


Sharing is caring!

by rarepairqueen



Series: The Alpha/Omega AU [1]
Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Fluff and Smut, It gets a little dark in some areas, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Mpreg, POV First Person, mentions of past relationships - Freeform, polyamory/pack relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-08
Updated: 2016-02-20
Packaged: 2018-04-30 15:53:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 133,543
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5169644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rarepairqueen/pseuds/rarepairqueen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Izuki's first heat happens at an inconvenient time and is only made worse when two team-mates find him trying to take care of it in the showers.<br/>What started as a one time thing quickly becomes more than all three of them bargained for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A bitch in heat

**Author's Note:**

> So this wasn't really a request...it was more of a dream that I told someone about and then it became a request. To think that 20 seconds of blurred images could turn in a long ass fic like this...I surprise myself and also slightly terrify myself.
> 
> The tags will be updated as the story progresses, mainly because I don't fully know what other pairings will be mentioned etc...
> 
> *Side note: I quite often swap between writing this fic and editing my other project that'll be published fairly soon so there may be slight references to it - just some casual foreshadowing.

_oh god no._

"Hey Izuki, you need to sit out?" Riko's voice from the side-line wasn't comforting in the slightest as the ball rebounded. The fourth miss so far in today's practice.

"N-No coach." I replied, knees shaking as my body heated up. This couldn't be happening _today_ and certainly not during practice of all times.

The signs were there though; increased pulse, shaking legs, lowered accuracy, a warm sickly feeling in my lower abdomen, dizziness, heightened paranoia.

"Focus dummy." Hyuuga chided, slapping the back of my head.

_Alpha_ , his scent screamed. I swallowed, they couldn't know that I was an omega. There were at least two alphas in our team and if they found out _now_ then god knew what would happen.

It would only be a matter of time though.

"What's gotten into you today?" Kiyoshi asked as I missed a simple pass from Koganei. I had to avert my gaze from him as his overwhelming scent washed over me.

"Nothing!" I snapped. "I'm fine."

"Well clearly you're not." Kiyoshi replied, poking my forehead. "You've missed every shot so far and you're starting to miss passes too."

I shrugged, basketball was the last thing on my mind as the heat spread, the burn between my legs was making way for something much worse and I knew I had to get out before then. With everyone taking a quick water break I headed to the locker room, I had to sort this out before it really began.

When the entire thing was explained to us in biology a year ago I didn't pay much mind to what I'd present as, it was no surprise when Hyuuga and Kiyoshi both announced they were alphas, Kagami was on track to be the same and the rest of us had kept to ourselves whether we had found out or not.

As far as I could tell, I was one of the first.

Mainly due to everyone seeming to turn a blind eye.

The calm, cool air of the locker room was a relief to my heated skin. I was panting as I stripped my shirt off, already coated in sweat as I threw it in my locker. I wasn't sure what to do, I doubted that jerking off would actually solve anything and I didn't have any of the pills that would ease the heat either.

I slammed my head against a closed locker. There was only one thing to do in this situation, I had to fuck myself in the locker room.

"Fuck sake..." I growled, my legs shaking as the burn became searing pain. Tears pricked in my eyes as I gritted my teeth, no-one told us how bad it would be. I was almost jealous of the alphas, they just had an increased sex drive which _could_ be solved by jerking off repeatedly...even if it was a little tiring.

With only my determination to guide me, I stumbled into one of the showers. The cold spray would ease the burn but ultimately it would do nothing to satisfy the craving. I had no idea what I would do once I started, the first wave would only be followed by a second and then a third...someone would walk in eventually.

That thought was shoved harshly to the back of my mind as I stripped the last of my clothes off and fiddled with the controls, the icy water relieving some of the burn but it was only temporary bliss.

"F-Fuck..." I cussed, resting my head against the tiled wall as one hand wrapped around my cock. The brief strokes gave little pleasure as the burn began to subside and a moistness began to spread between my legs, a moistness that wasn't water.

I wasn't aware of my hand moving until I felt two of my fingers pressing into me. For a fleeting moment I felt pain but that was quickly forgotten as pain was replaced by relief. My moan bounced off the walls as I sought to end this as quickly as possible, however lack of experience was a slight hindrance.

My hand around my cock moved to splay against the wall, searching for purchase as I plunged my fingers deeper. Water hammered down on my back and drowned out all the noise of the world around me.

That was until I heard two voices.

"He was acting weird okay." Kiyoshi sighed. "So I thought I'd drop it and let him cool off but obviously--"

"Hold on." Hyuuga's tone was sharp but concerned. I withdrew my fingers and froze in fear, pressing my body against the wall, if they found me like this then it would be my death, socially and physically. I knew the stories of omegas getting caught by alphas all too well, the forced claims, the abusive mating...

"Shun?" The captain's voice called. I could only whimper as my knees shook partly from fear and partly from the heat.

I forced my eyes shut, waiting for the inevitable.

"Hey..." A soft voice caught me off guard. I turned my head, aware I was naked in front of them both and very vulnerable.

"Hi." I uttered, blinking rapidly and trying to still my shaking body.

They knew. I could tell, Hyuuga cracked his neck and rubbed the back of his head whilst Kiyoshi cleared his throat.

"So, you're an omega then?" The centre murmured. "Is this why you were acting weird?"

I tried to swallow the lump in my throat. They were trying to resist so badly but if I knew anything about alphas then they couldn't hold back for too long.

"...yes." I uttered, averting my gaze. "Yes I'm an omega."

Hyuuga sighed heavily, looking from Kiyoshi to me, eyes roving over my body like I was food. I knew he didn't think of me like some cheap whore but weird things happened when an alpha found an omega in heat. Hormones took over, instinct over-ruled thinking and there was not a lot I could to do stop it.

"Do you want us to sort out your...problem?" Hyuuga asked, voice low and husky. My chest was heaving, legs shaking and the burn was biting back at the loss of my fingers. I stammered for a bit, trying to figure out what to do or say or even process what was going to happen if I said yes.

"P-Please...be gentle..." I sighed, eyes flicking from one alpha to the other.

I expected it to be rough but this was a side to my best friend I hadn't seen before. Hyuuga pulled me from the shower and into his hold, rolling his hips against me with a growl, lips pressing against my neck before teeth sunk into the damp sensitive flesh.

"Ooh god--" I panted, feeling how hard he was already, my own instincts beginning to take over. He chuckled into my neck as his hands gripped my waist.

"Shhh..." Kiyoshi's quiet voice came as he stepped in front of me. His hand wrapped around my cock and gave a gentle but firm stroke. "Unless you want a third alpha in here?"

Anything sounded good as long as it got rid of the burn inside me. I pressed back against my captain's hardened length, he panted against my neck as one hand left my waist and tugged his shorts and pants down roughly. I could feel the warmth of his cock against my exposed skin, I whimpered, needing it inside me so badly, the natural call to submit was overwhelming.

"Don't do it standing up." Kiyoshi murmured to Hyuuga. "It'll hurt him."

Hyuuga tsked, biting down on my neck and coaxing me to the centre bench. "Lock the door then Teppei, last thing we need is another alpha crashing the party."

I didn't care anymore. I just needed them to get this over with already. I found myself straddling Hyuuga's lap as he sat on the bench, our eyes met and for a brief moment reality crashed into me, his lips stole mine and shoved that thought away.

A hand trailed down my spine, finger pressing into my heat, the slickness only increasing as he thrusted inside me, I moaned into his mouth, pining for more. The fullness was short-lived as he pulled away, smirking as I whimpered.

"Isn't he pretty like this?" Kiyoshi murmured from beside us, hand carding through my hair as I rolled my hips against Hyuuga's.

"Yeah he is...our little omega."

"Our?"

They shared a glance. I nuzzled Hyuuga's neck, feeling ignored even thought I knew that two alphas could and would get into a serious fight over me if they didn't come to a verbal agreement.

"You wanna share him?" Hyuuga asked, finger teasing my asshole again. "You know he can't be claimed by both of us."

"Traditionally...no. You and I both know we like breaking the rules." Kiyoshi whispered, leaning over to kiss my bare shoulder, rubbing his scent over me as Hyuuga moved to strip his shirt off.

"Fine. I'm fucking him first though."

"Just get on with it!" I snapped, the burning getting bad again. They both chuckled.

"Oi, who's the alpha here?" Hyuuga remarked, raking hands down my back so I moaned loudly and pressed against him. That's right, us."

His hands pulled my ass cheeks apart as he lifted me up. I felt the tip of his cock brushed teasingly against me before he fully sheathed himself inside me. I threw my head back as I moaned loudly, feeling myself be filled by him, the pain was still there but it was nothing compared to the sweet pleasure.

"Feel good?" He whispered. "Having me inside you?"

"Oh god _yes_." I breathed.

Kiyoshi hummed, hand running down my back as Hyuuga began to roll his hips. My fingers gripped Hyuuga's shoulders as he thrusted into me quickly and without restraint, my mind was a blur; a mixture of pleasure and pain coursing through every fibre of my being, heat and chills running over my skin as he roughly pounded my ass.

The sound of skin slapping skin echoed off the walls, grunts and moans joining it. The sweet bundle of nerves inside me was getting hit with every new thrust, sweat coated by back as I whined into his shoulder and felt his teeth on my neck again.

"You wanna come?" Hyuuga hissed. I nodded through my hazy thoughts.

He angled his thrust, biting his lip as he worked to hit my sweet spot. I pressed my forehead against his, panting as he held my hips in place and slammed up into me. A large hand snaked between us and stroked cock in time with his thrusts, squeezing with just the right amount of force to make me see stars, moaning and crashing my lips against Hyuuga's neck as my mind crackled and popped.

Within a few moments, Hyuuga roughly pulled out, coming up over my lower back as he slumped against the centre pillar of the bench.

"Wha--" I whimpered, feeling two strong hands rub circles into my hips. The heat was steadily building inside me again as the second wave began. I hadn't been filled yet so god only knew how bad this would be. I shot Hyuuga a confused look, he raised an eyebrow at me.

"You really thought I was going to let him have all the fun?" Kiyoshi murmured, licking the shell of my ear. Tender kisses were only a ploy, my body shook from the aftermath of my orgasm as the blurred lines of what was a dream and what was reality intertwined.

I whimpered again, clinging to my captain as I tried to assemble my scattered thoughts.

"Give him a second." Hyuuga whispered, raking a hand through my hair and pulling my head aside. He pressed a softer kiss to my cheek as I panted, the burn slowly taking over my body again.

"Fuck...just fuck me again." I pined. "Teppei..."

They seemed to agree on something as I was lifted onto the bench, placed on my hands and knees just like the bitch in heat I was. Kiyoshi's smooth touches to my back made me shiver, a finger slipping inside me with ease.

"Do you want to be filled Shun?" He whispered, leaning over me and covering me with his large body. His scent rolling off him as I struggled to keep myself up.

"Yes! Just--fuck me." I snapped, my irritation and desperation mixing together in a poisonous cocktail.

A rough hand on my hair tugged my head back, Hyuuga bit down on my neck harshly, blood was drawn as he growled threateningly.

"Omegas don't bark orders." He rasped. "Remember that."

Kiyoshi chuckled, pressing into me, stretching me further than before. I let out a drawn out moan, Hyuuga's hand in my hair starting to hurt as the pace increased drastically.

"Well?" He hissed, Kiyoshi pausing in his thrusts and making me whimper.

"I-I.." I was at a loss, what was I supposed to say?

"We're your alphas. You're our omega. You take orders from us, not the other way around."

"Yes." I uttered, Kiyoshi's cock was twitching inside of me as I clenched around him. "I take orders."

My hair was released, I hung my head as the brutal pace returned, my moans gaining pitch with each brush of my prostate. My body was stinging from the roughness but the burn of pleasure as my cock leaked over the polished bench was worth it.

The harsh slap to my ass made me scream, a hand over my mouth followed by another slap made me flinch. Fingers danced down my spine before another spank reddened my skin. I whimpered against Hyuuga's hand, conflicted between pain and pleasure as Kiyoshi's pace slowed.

"P-Please..." I whimpered, my arms shaking so much the my elbows folded, my face resting against the cool wood as Kiyoshi pressed deeper, grunting as he fell out of rhythm. I felt him fill out, I just wanted to feel the warmth enter me further still.

"Fuck!" Kiyoshi cussed, pulling out of me abruptly and spilling over my back.

They were teasing me, testing my stamina, seeing how long I could go before breaking completely. It was such an alpha thing to do.

"So, do we put him out of his misery yet?" Hyuuga remarked, finger trailing over my shoulder-blades and hand coming to grip the back of my neck. I whimpered but said nothing about my hard-on.

"Do you wanna or should I?" Kiyoshi panted.

There was a pause.

"I think he could take us both."

"You sure about this?" Kiyoshi asked, question directed at Hyuuga rather than me. "We don't wanna split him in half."

_Oh god._

"What do you say eh?" Hyuuga's voice dripped with glee at the idea. "Do you want both of us fucking you? Filling you up with our seed? Claiming you as ours?"

I nodded, panting and whimpering at the same time. "Please...please fuck me...I want to be claimed..."

Kiyoshi moaned, Hyuuga nipped at my neck. "That's a good omega." He whispered in my ear.

"Junpei...you really think he can take both of us? It's his first heat."

My mind was racing, just the idea of both of them inside me, stretching me, filling me, claiming me as theirs was enough to ease the burn for a few moments.

"I want you both..." I whimpered, tilting my head to look at them, my vision hazy and my body trembling from needing release.

Kiyoshi scooped me up in his arms, biting down on the side of my neck that wasn't marked, growling as his hand roughly stroked my cock. Hyuuga bit his lip as he watched me come apart within seconds, every nerve in my body was buzzing as they moved me how they wanted me.

I found myself lying on top of Kiyoshi, hands struggling for purchase on his broad chest. My body was beginning to tire, the burning wasn't as intense as before and my mind was more blurred than focused.

"God you look so beautiful right now." Hyuuga murmured from behind me.

Kiyoshi hummed in agreement, fingers raking down my back as he eased himself into me. I let out a noise caught between a whimper and a sigh, my stretched hole letting him press further in with one motion. It didn't take long for a second cock to line up and begin slipping into me.

"Oh god--" I gasped, a low growl rumbling from Kiyoshi as Hyuuga slid in. My entire body was trembling as I was caught between the two alphas, from the nerves and the buzz of what was to occur.

"There you go." Hyuuga whispered against my neck. "Both of us inside you 'cause one alpha just isn't enough for you is it?"

I shook my head, wanting them to move, wanting to be marked and claimed by them both. Kiyoshi's fingers gripped my hips as he slowly began to thrust inside me. A loud moan bounced off the walls of the room as I felt his cock drag against my prostate, Hyuuga restrained himself, content with holding me in place and attacking my neck as I adjusted to having two cocks inside of me.

"That's right, moan for us." He hissed. "You're such a needy omega aren't you? Needing both of us to fuck you through your heat, your _first_ heat. God imagine what the next one will be like? Will you need more? You'd like that wouldn't you?"

All I could do was nod as I moaned. I could smell both of their scents rolling off them as I was pinned between them. My own cock rubbing against Kiyoshi's stomach, gaining friction and only quickening my impending orgasm.

It didn't take long for them to find a rhythm that they were comfortable with. I could barely tell where one of them stopped and the other began as they thrusted inside of me. All I knew was that it felt good, being fucked roughly between them, their grunts and hisses joining my needy moans and whimpers.

It was a blur mostly; choked moans, clenching muscles, frenzied thrusts and harsh bites My body was sweating and trembling as Hyuuga let out a growl and stilled, nuzzling the back of my neck as Kiyoshi too stilled inside me with a frantic thrust. I didn't think anything of it until I felt them both knot.

"Oh _fuck_." I almost screamed, if it wasn't tight before, it was almost too much to bear now. Kiyoshi's gentle hand cupping my face gave me some comfort but it was a little too late.

"Ah shit..." Hyuuga cussed, coming down from his high enough to realise what had happened.

I was too tired, I couldn't find the strength to do anything. All I could do was lie on top of Kiyoshi and pant heavily, feeling so deliciously full and somewhat surprised that I had actually taken two alphas inside of me, even if it was a tad too tight for them both now.

"Please tell me you locked the door like I told you to." Hyuuga uttered to Kiyoshi.

"Y-Yeah." The other sighed, gently carding a hand through my hair as he gazed at my exhausted face. "So we're gonna be here a while...and you're gonna be sore as hell."

I tried not to think about that. I also tried not to think about the possible consequences of this frenzied session. The air in the room felt heavy, although that might've been the fact I was weighed down by the others. Hyuuga pressed soft kisses to by neck and shoulders, licking the bite marks they had both left.

"So I guess you're both my alpha? How does that even work?" I breathed, slightly losing myself in the gentle touches.

"Don't think about it too much. It's not like everyone has to know who claimed you, just that you're claimed." Hyuuga murmured. "It's not like this changes things between us much anyway."

I sighed, burying my face in the crook of Kiyoshi's neck as my body began to relax. I could feel the slickness inside me from both of them, every part of my brain was telling me that the chances of _that_ happening were slim but there was that tiny voice that nagged me a little.

It took what felt like forever, most of the time was spent with my body getting peppered with kisses and feather-like touches that seemed so innocent compared to everything else I had been subjected to, but eventually Hyuuga was able to slip out without too much discomfort. I gritted my teeth as Kiyoshi followed suit shortly after, I was left feeling empty and spent, panting and sweating almost like none of my heat had been subsided whatsoever.

"You've got to be kidding me..." Hyuuga sighed as my legs trembled again. "Oh-kay, we're taking you home. There's no way you're going alone in this state."

Kiyoshi nodded, finding a clean towel to wipe me down and help me get dressed whilst Hyuuga quickly threw his kit back on and strode out the door to tell Riko that I was ill or something of the sort - whether she'd buy it was another matter entirely. My mind was fuzzy and I didn't even recall Kiyoshi lifting me onto his back once he was dressed, Hyuuga made some remark about how Riko was probably going to kill us all before they took me home.

The entire trip was done via back alleys and side streets, taking twice as long but the two of them were in a protective mode it seemed. There was a split second where Hyuuga froze, staring down another student from a rival school, I could smell the other's scent and concluded he was an unmated alpha. My captain let a warning growl escape his lips, sending a clear message to the other.

"You're on edge." Kiyoshi remarked quietly as I nuzzled his neck.

"I'm not letting anyone mess with what's mine." Hyuuga uttered as they paused at a crossroads. Kiyoshi chuckled and let me slide off his back. I tried to stand but my legs were like jelly, the final traces of my heat were still rippling through me as I caught myself in Hyuuga's arms.

I found myself being swept up bridal style, I tried not to blush as I buried my face in his chest, feeling the steady thud of his heartbeat. He carried me like that the rest of the way home until we were a few houses away from mine.

"You're gonna have to walk now Shun." He whispered. "Your parents will be concerned if we have to carry you in."

I nodded, forcing my legs to support my weight even if they ached. Kiyoshi ruffled my hair and pressed a kiss to the back of my neck as my captain rested his forehead against mine.

"You know, we're not always gonna be rough with you." He murmured, smiling softly. "Hormones just got the better of us you know?"

I nodded, linking my fingers with his and glancing over my shoulder at Kiyoshi. "I know."

With little else to say on the matter, the escorted me to my home and made sure I got inside okay. As soon as the door closed behind me I slumped to the floor. The exhaustion was almost enough to make me forget about the potential consequences of today's actions.

I was an omega.

I just got claimed by two alphas.

None of us thought about protection.

Fuck.


	2. I need you by my side

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't intend to update so soon but my sleeping mind struck again...and this happened. 
> 
>  
> 
> Also as I'm probably going to say a lot - tags and pairings will be updated throughout the story but the rating/title etc will stay the same.

 

It was three weeks after my first heat, things had been as normal as you would expect given that I had two alphas constantly around me. It wasn't actually too weird, they were my best friends after all so most of the time they didn't treat me any differently. There were occasional moments where another alpha would get too close for Hyuuga's liking, or being around them both would drain me of energy that Kiyoshi would take me behind the sports gym and cuddle me until I felt better.

When Riko gave the marks on my neck a puzzled look I told her my dog had gotten excited again and I had gotten caught in the chaos. It was obvious that I was lying but she didn't made a big deal of it. She probably knew exactly what had happened but she didn't say anything for some reason.

Regardless, we were having a practice match against Touou and everyone was in high spirits. Even walking into the rival team’s locker room didn't seem as intimidating as it used to before inter-high, with the Winter Cup only a month away both teams were anxious to prove themselves better than the other.

I hadn't told Hyuuga and Kiyoshi about my paranoia. Mainly because I didn't want to worry them and also because I didn't want to think about it. When my mother practically demanded that I told her how I got claimed by two alphas - I was covered in their scent unsurprisingly - I skipped over that part of the tale. She hadn't been too amused by the situation but she came around when she found out it was my two best friends who had done it and that I wouldn't have wanted anyone else to be there in that moment.

"How you feeling?" Hyuuga murmured as the rest of the team filed out of the locker room, he pressed a soft kiss to my neck as I closed my bag up. "This'll be your first serious match since--"

"I know." I sighed. "And there's at least two other alphas on the court. I know."

He had been very careful with me in private, almost desperate to prove that he could be gentle with me like Kiyoshi nearly always was anyway. It was endearing but also a little annoying sometimes.

"I just want to make sure you're okay." He carded a hand through my hair.

"Thanks Junpei, I'll be okay. Coach knows that I'm an omega and if she sees any foul play directed at me because of it she'll bring it up with the ref."

"Still sucks how unfair this all is on your kind-- I mean...uh shit I didn't mean to--"

I silenced him with a kiss on the cheek. "I know, it's okay."

 

\---

 

The scent was overwhelming. It was no surprise that Touou's captain was an alpha but it was a tad on the strong side, I blinked rapidly as the two teams lined up before the match. If I could smell him then he could definitely smell me, that also meant he could smell the others _on me_.

As we shifted to our starting positions I felt my chest tighten. I tried to focus on the ball, tried to keep myself calm, heck just remembering to breathe was proving difficult.

"It's been a while hasn't it?" The silky smooth voice commented beside me. My eyes widened as I came face-to-face with Imayoshi. He grinned and pushed his glasses up slightly. "And now you've finally presented haven't you?"

"Shut up." I hissed, trying not to attract the attention of anyone. All hell would break loose if Hyuuga overheard this conversation. "Shouldn't you be focusing on the game?"

"How can I when there's such a delicious smelling omega in front of me?"

"You have more self-control than that." I remarked, tapping into his ego. "You wouldn't make such a stupid mistake in front of everyone would you? Not when you can smell the other alphas here."

"So I'm right in assuming the two I smell on you are the same two on your side of the court?"

The harsh shrill of the ref's whistle snapped us both back to the game. It was a fast paced game, for the most part I forgot about the apprehension that Imayoshi had planted in me, it was business as usual when the second quarter ended.

"You okay?" Kiyoshi asked as half-time started. "You seem a bit on edge."

I shrugged, trying to ignore the tightness in my stomach. "Just tired."

Riko gave us all a dressing down for our first half performance, we were trailing by 24 points and as Aomine strolled into the gym - late as usual - I felt my stomach tighten more.

"Oh great." Koganei sighed. "We're doomed."

"Be optimistic Koga!" Kiyoshi remarked.

Kagami nodded, grinning at the prospect of facing off against the ace again. As the others got ready for the second half I found myself leaning forward on my elbows, head hanging between my shoulders as I breathed deeply.

"Senpai are you okay?" Furihata murmured from beside me. I swallowed dryly, my throat like sandpaper as I shook my head. It had been sudden, the twist and turning of my stomach was getting too much for me to keep down.

Riko's hands came on either side of my face, she told Furihata to take up my position on the court and to tell Hyuuga to carry on like they agreed. She made me look at her, soft hazel eyes studying mine.

"Do you need to lie down?" She asked, glancing at Kuroko who had been subbed out since Aomine was here. She probably thought it was an effect of being around so many alphas at once that had caused this change in me.

"I-I don't know." I whispered, clutching my stomach as I fought to breathe properly.

I could smell the heightened tension on court between the two teams and it made me feel worse. My body rebelled, I clasped a hand over my mouth to try and prevent it. In a flash Kuroko had his arm around my waist and was pulling me to the changing room with Riko holding the door open for us. I got to the restroom in time.

As I slumped to the floor panting, I felt Kuroko's gentle touch on my back rubbing soothing circles into my sore muscles. I sat up slowly, worrying that my stomach would rebel again if I moved too quickly.

"Thanks Kuroko." I murmured with a weak smile as I leaned back against the wall of the cubicle. He nodded, a stoic expression on his face as he passed me some tissue to wipe my mouth with. I winced as I rubbed my stomach, cursing the fact I was so weak that I had succumbed to something so pitiful as a scent.

"Is it really because there were just so many alphas around?" Kuroko asked, crossing his legs as he sat on the floor with me.

I shrugged. "God knows. I'll be useless in the winter cup if that's the case." I tried to stop the tears falling as reality crashed into me. If I was so mentally weak with only a team like Touou then it was ludicrous to think I stood a chance against the best of the best. "I'll have to quit the team."

Kuroko shook his head. "I don't think it's that senpai." He told me, taking my hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze. I was confused first by his unusual friendliness and secondly his words.

"Then what is it?" I sniffed, rubbing my face with my jersey. "What could possibly be causing this?"

Kuroko smiled slightly before exhaling. "Senpai, do you think that you might be pregnant?"

 

\---

 

In the break between the third and fourth quarter Koganei came to find us, I wondered why it wasn't Hyuuga or Kiyoshi but Riko was probably keeping them focused on the game instead. That and she probably wanted me to rest rather than get worked up.

Kuroko had speculated with me about how long it had been since my heat, I didn't ask how he knew - I mean it was pretty damn obvious - and how the subtle changes in my physical state that I had thought were just final adjustments after presenting were actually something different.

Koganei sent the first year away before taking his place on the floor next to me. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and hugged me. The urge to vomit had disappeared but I felt very drained so I curled into his hold, slightly wishing that it was one of my mates but not taking Koganei's kindness for granted either.

"So, pregnant huh?" He remarked.

"Possibly." I mumbled. "What am I gonna do Koga? I can't be...not with the winter cup so close."

"Well first, you're gonna have to tell Hyuuga and Kiyoshi. Second, you take a test and find out once and for all." He replied, rubbing my arm reassuringly. "You know we're all here for you Itzuki~"

I chuckled at his nickname for me. He had a point though, I had to find out for sure and I had to tell the others. I couldn't find the physical strength to stand though and going back out there was only going to make my stomach turn again.

"Don't strain yourself." Koganei murmured as I tried to move and only succeeded in wincing. "Just stay here and we'll wait for everyone to get back. I'm sure the captain wouldn't want you--"

"Can you at least help me to one of the benches then?" I asked. "Please Koga, I don't want them to find me on the bathroom floor."

He nodded, standing up and helping me to my feet, my legs shook and my stomach protested. I got seated on a bench and the bin was given to me as he told me was going to inform Riko that I was okay. I nodded, sighing heavily as the door closed behind him.

I don't know how long I sat there staring at the trash in the bin, surprisingly it didn't make me feel sick which only led to the hypothesis that it was because of the alphas. I heard footsteps and the door opened slowly, a gentle hand on my shoulder spurred me to look up at Kiyoshi's kind but concerned gaze.

He sat down without a word and pulled me into a hug, strong arms coming around me protectively as I breathed in his scent, a musky but sweet aroma that reminded me of home. I brought my knees up to my chest and crawled onto his lap seeking comfort as my thoughts spun out of control.

"It's okay." He whispered, hand rubbing my back as I started to sob. I didn't see how it could possibly be okay.

"I-I can't." I hiccupped, hands fisting his sweaty jersey. "Where's J-Junpei?"

"He's talking with Riko about what's got to happen now. The rest of the team are waiting outside until you're okay with them coming in."

I felt bad, I was letting this effect the whole team when it was still unconfirmed and just speculation. Whether it was correct speculation was another matter. After a few moments I managed to control my breathing and stop sobbing. Kiyoshi helped me get changed before telling the others they could come in. I avoided all of their gazes and stared at the floor, turning my phone in my hands as I debated calling my mother and freaking out to her.

Hyuuga was the last to arrive back, he looked tired but none of that seemed to matter as he ruffled my hair on the way to his locker. I swallowed as my hands trembled, feeling another rebellion from my body. I decided to act before I needed to, getting up silently and locking myself in a cubicle. Tears fell again as I thought about how this all probably looked to the first years; their senpai, their point guard, their friend, hanging by a frayed edge as he came to terms with being an omega.

I violently vomited again, panting as I straightened up and hastily wiped my damp eyes. It occurred to me that I hadn't heard the result of the match, not that I needed to, without me as point guard there was little hope for the team against the likes of Aomine, even Furihata's best efforts would be nothing that Imayoshi couldn't handle.

Hyuuga was waiting for me as soon as I unlocked the door. He gently coaxed me into a hug and rubbed my back. He told me the others had all left ahead of us and that him and Kiyoshi were going to take me home and explain all this to my mother. He also said that the rest of the team understood that this was a rough thing to be going through and that they were all willing to help in any way they could.

"Come on." He murmured, taking my hand. "We'll look after you babe."

This was a first. I nodded, trying to process that he was using pet names for me and that it wasn't that surprising given the situation. Then again, we hadn't behaved like a couple - or poly unit for that matter - at all, the gentle kisses to each other's cheeks were just to show we were mated, I hadn't let myself put too much affection into them. Kiyoshi smiled warmly, picking up my bag and remaining adamant that he'd carry it home for me.

Being fussed over was something I was gonna have to get used to I supposed.

As we walked to the train station I called my mother, she told me both my sisters were at a relative's house for the night for one reason or another and asked why I was calling. I chose my words carefully so not to worry her.

"Mom, I need to ask you about something when I get home." I bit my lip as I squeezed Hyuuga's hand.

"Oh? What is it Shun?"

I didn't want to tip her off. "Uh-It's nothing really. Also can Hyuuga and Kiyoshi join us for dinner?"

She made a remark about having my two mates with me all the time but gave permission anyway. My heart was slamming in my chest the rest of the way home. Hyuuga nuzzled my neck, pressing soft kisses in an attempt to calm my racing pulse as Kiyoshi kept a one-sided conversation going about Touou's play style during the match, keeping me informed on our rivals as if I wasn't about to potentially crash out of the team.

My bottom lip was in danger of bleeding as I tried to open the door of my home, my hand shook so much I couldn't jam the key in. Eventually I got the door open and called out for my mother. She poked her head around the door of the kitchen and smiled, the smile turned to concern as she looked me over.

"You've been sick haven't you?" She asked, wiping her hands on her shirt. "What happened?"

I put up my hands to try and calm her, stepping back into Hyuuga's hold almost instinctively as my mind broke down a little. Kiyoshi distracted her by asking about her day, he then offered to help with meal preparations which successfully got her off  interrogating me.

My captain helped me to my room. I sighed heavily as I led on the bed and rubbed my face, he crawled next to me and kissed my cheek.

"Hey, come on Shun." He whispered, hands pulling mine away from my face as he could catch my eye. "She's your mom, she'll be here for you too."

"But--"

"Even if she's mad at first, she's not going to abandon you. Heck, she can be mad at me and Teppei if she really wants but you're her son. You didn't ask to be an omega but life's full of surprises, and as your alphas we're going to do our best to be here for you no matter what."

He was talking as if it was set in stone already. I shrugged, not sure how to feel anymore. I knew I was lucky to have them as alphas as opposed to some pairings I had seen, I could tell that they were just in it for the sex and there was no real connection past that, but ours was built on friendship, that had to count for something right now.

Kiyoshi appeared at the door as I led on the bed, Hyuuga's hand rubbing circles into the back of my hand. He smiled and leaned against the doorway until Hyuuga asked him if he was waiting for an invitation.

"Food's nearly ready." The centre replied. "Plus you look adorable, I'd hate to ruin the picture."

I snorted, my stomach didn't feel right and I doubted that eating would solve the problem. Hyuuga rolled his eyes, turning his attention back to me as I winced at my body trying to rebel again. He pressed his lips delicately to mine, my heart skipped a beat, this wasn't an impulsive move during a heat, he was kissing me because he wanted to.

And I was kissing back. I was letting myself show affection where I'd been reluctant to in fear that this was really just an alpha thing for them.

For whatever reason, it calmed me down a little. I shuffled closer to him, seeking his healing touch again. He chuckled when I murmured out my logic before tenderly kissing me again, hand caressing my cheek slowly. My mother's voice spurred us to move, I put on a brave face as we sat an ate together. I could tell my mother was watching me closely for signs of what made me ill but also for hints at what I wanted to ask her about.

Once the meal was over I just wanted to sleep, the day's events had drained me but I had to force myself to stay awake. My paranoia wouldn't let me rest.

"So Shun, what did you want to ask me?" She spoke with a smile as Hyuuga washed up the dishes. Kiyoshi squeezed my hand under the table in reassurance as I exhaled heavily.

I tried to keep myself calm, Hyuuga was right anyway; my mom wouldn't abandon me over something like this. It was more likely that she'd be mad at the others.

"It's gonna sound crazy." I murmured, trying to appear calm and cool-headed, squeezing Kiyoshi's hand as the nerves began to take hold. "And I don't want you to get mad."

She reached out and took my other hand in between hers. "Shun, if this is about what I think it is then there's nothing to worry about."

I shook my head. "No I-It's not just about the whole being omega thing." I babbled. "Well it is but it's not _that_."

Kiyoshi let go of my hand and rubbed my back. "Easy now, breathe."

My mother looked worried but nodded encouragingly. "Go on."

I sighed and hung my head, I couldn't bear to look at her, I felt like I was a disgrace of a son. "The thing is...the reason I was sick today wasn't because of an illness or anything like that." I murmured. "I-I...mom I think I'm pregnant."

 

\---

 

Kiyoshi held me close under the sheets, warm breath tickling my cheeks as his arm wrapped around my back and pulled me even closer. Hyuuga had gone home, citing that the bed wasn't really big enough for all three of us and that his parents would get suspicious anyway.

My mother hadn't freaked out like I thought she would've. Maybe because it was still all speculation. She had questioned me, mainly asking why I thought I was pregnant - lecturing us about unprotected sex - and then comforting me. She told me that I didn't have to go to school tomorrow and that she'd get me a test, she even said that one of the others could stay with me if that would make me feel better.

"Do you think that I'm pregnant?" I whispered to Kiyoshi in the darkness. I could hear my father asking my mother loads of questions, the number of times the term 'omega' had been mentioned was into double digits.

"I'm reserving judgement." He replied. "Regardless, Hyuuga and I are here for you."

I nodded. "Teppei?"

"Hm?"

"...if I'm not...will you still treat me this way?"

"What way?"

I struggled to word my thoughts, feeling my cheeks heat up. "Like your boyfriend."

He chuckled, chest rumbling against my body as he did so. "If you want me to Shun, I'm sure Junpei will have no problem with it either."

"Y-You'd both...consider me your boyfriend?"

"Well we are mates after all, but yeah we would. There's more to this than simple hormones you know. We wouldn't be with you now if we didn't love you."

Love?

They _loved_ me?

"Teppei." I whispered.

"Yeah?"

I didn't know what I wanted to say, words couldn't express what I was feeling as I led in his safe embrace. I didn't feel inferior to him despite the difference between us, he only wanted to protect me and make me feel happy.

My hand ghosted over his cheek, coaxing him to lean closer. Tenderly, I pressed my lips to his, catching the surprised gasp that escaped him. His hand covered mine, linking our fingers together as I pulled back in search of air.

"You both love me?" I breathed.

"Yeah. We would've said sooner but we didn't want to make things awkward...or a love triangle for that matter."

"But since I'm an omega you can both have me?" I remarked, an air of scepticism in my voice that made him laugh.

"Something like that." He murmured. "Come on, you need sleep."

There were a few moments of silence between us, I felt nervous. What was I _actually_ going to do if I was pregnant? What about my studies? The Winter Cup? That's if we were to keep it of course. Would Kiyoshi or Hyuuga want to keep it?

Would I want to keep it?

Kiyoshi hummed lightly as he carded a hand through my hair, whispering to me how he wasn't going to leave my side if he could help it, how Hyuuga and him would protect me against everything they could, how I wasn't alone in this.

I felt safe with him, the paranoia was still coursing through me but his presence dulled its sting enough so I could surrender to fatigue without fear.


	3. Conflicted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it was a case of "do I finish this chapter or do a request" and this won. (although the request will get done asap now)
> 
> Also the more I write in first person the less I feel like swapping to 3rd.
> 
> Annnd as always, tags will be updated blah blah blah...next update will happen when it happens (basically within two weeks).
> 
> Also shoutout to my bae Sidra for helping me with head-canons!

Two lines. Positive.

My heart was in my throat as I stared at it. I didn't know how to feel.

The bathroom seemed much smaller as I slumped to the floor, back against the door and hitting my head softly against the wood as tears formed in my eyes.

I gently rubbed my hand over my lower abdomen. It didn't feel any different now but that would change quickly, a normal human pregnancy was nine months but ones in male omegas were quicker because their bodies weren't as well equipped as a female's body so the child was effectively forced to be born prematurely. The child didn't always survive because of this.

That was another thought entirely that I didn't want to consider. I had to muster what strength I had to tell them. To tell them that I was pregnant.

As I left the bathroom I found my mother leaning against the wall, arms folded across her chest. She gave me a sympathetic smile as I nodded at her. I let her draw me into her arms, feeling small and vulnerable in that moment.

"Do you want me to be with you when you tell them?" She whispered. I shook my head, burying my face in her shirt and breathing in her motherly scent for a few more moments before pulling away.

"I'll tell them a-and we'll figure out what we're gonna do." I told her, putting on a brave smile despite my own doubts.

She held my face and wiped away my tears. "Don't rush it, take your time. Your father and I will support you in your choice. Your sisters don't know anything yet and they don't have to until you want them to."

I nodded, moving to the door of my room. My hand was shaking as I opened the door. Both of them were stood up, Kiyoshi was hugging Hyuuga but they immediately broke apart as I closed the door behind me. It was obvious from my body language what the answer was but I had to suck it up and tell them.

Hyuuga sat on my bed and gestured for me to come over. I sniffed loudly and crawled into his hold, feeling the bed dip as Kiyoshi sat behind him and rested his head on Hyuuga's shoulder. My captain ruffled my hair, pressing a kiss to my temple as I sighed heavily.

"So?" He murmured.

I bit my lip and nodded. "It's positive."

I felt him exhale, he pulled me a little closer. "I'm sorry." He whispered. "I'm sorry that we put you in this situation Shun."

"Apologies don't change the fact..." I uttered, conflicting emotions going to war already. I wanted to just curl up with both of them and ignore this problem. Ignore it and just enjoy their company.

Hyuuga pulled me so that I was lying on the bed, he stroked my cheek as Kiyoshi moved to my other side. I didn't say anything else, I just watched him as he propped himself up on one elbow. He wasn't being very expressive, his eyes showed he was deep in thought as his hand ghosted over my cheek.

I felt Kiyoshi's lips on the back of my neck, gentle as his hand found mine. This silence between us was starting to get to me, I wanted them to say something, _anything_.

"...you love me right?" I breathed, just wanting clarity more than anything. "You both love me?"

Without missing a beat, Hyuuga nodded, leaning closer to me and pressing his forehead to mine. "Yes Shun. We both love you."

Kiyoshi hummed in agreement.

"Not just because of the..." My voice faded, not wanting to say it. "-because of the result?"

"You're my best friend."  Hyuuga whispered. "We've grown up together, you and I, we've always been there for each other. You've always encouraged me to do what I love and you're always supporting me. More than I deserve, I've kept these feelings hidden for a while, not wanting to ruin this friendship...I only want you to be happy Shun. You're amazing really, always putting a smile on my face despite your stupid puns..."

"And you're so dedicated to the team, the game, everything." Kiyoshi murmured. "Always striving to be better, to have fun. Do you remember when you visited me in hospital after my surgery?"

I nodded, casting my mind back to when I saw him in the bland room. He was still a bit loopy from the anaesthetic but he beamed at me as I made a string of bad puns, focusing more on taking his mind off his injury with comedy.

"You were out of it still though." I uttered.

"I remember how you wanted me to forget about the match, what Hanamiya did to me. You wanted me to be happy, making jokes about everything under the sun."

"Laughter is the best medicine."

"Of course it is." He breathed. "That was also the day that I started realising my feelings for you."

So they had both had feelings for me for a while and just chose not to say anything. Whilst I was a little put out that they had kept it from me for so long it did give me peace of mind.

That being said, we still had to decide what to do.

"...do we keep it?" I asked, sitting up and glancing at both of them in turn.

For a moment they were both silent, exchanging glances before Hyuuga spoke.

"What do you want to do Shun?"

I shrugged, I didn't know how I really felt about the whole thing, let alone if I wanted to become a parent. The conversation I had with Koganei reared its head from my memory; how I was distraught at giving up basketball, jeopardising the team's chance at winning the winter cup, being one of the youngest omegas to get pregnant whilst at school would cause a social stir I could do without.

But then again, right now I had a child inside of me, well it wasn't a child - not yet - but it was growing. It was mine, no _ours_.

"I-I don't know."

Kiyoshi rubbed soothing circles into my back with his hands as I rested my elbows on my knees and hung my head. I really didn't know what to do.

"We're just kids ourselves." I whispered. "We can't raise one."

"Can't we?" Kiyoshi asked.

Hyuuga sat up, shifting so he was in front of me. He gently cupped my face and coaxed me to look at him, his expression was one of concern but I saw a familiar determination in his eyes.

"If you want more time to think about it then we can drop it for now. We have time." He told me, glancing at Kiyoshi briefly. "I think it would be best not to rush into a decision now. Let's take a few days to come to terms with it and think about it, yeah?"

I gave him a weak smile, tearing up at the how well he was taking it. Kiyoshi nodded and ruffled my hair, pressing a kiss to my cheek.

"I think that's the best idea." He said. "Especially given that neither of our parents know about this yet."

Hyuuga sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "Y-Yeah. That's gonna be a fun conversation. I don't think they even know I'm gay."

"You do keep a rather low profile." I remarked, a bit of life coming back into my voice. Hyuuga gave me an unimpressed look but chuckled.

The somewhat sombre atmosphere seemed to lift, the two of them started telling me about the day they had spent at school and how they didn't actually tell Riko they weren't going to practice. I hadn't thought about that, the entire day I had been pacing the room, trying to figure out what I was going to do or say when the result came through. I hadn't given the team a second thought for once.

My mother had been worried about me, I didn't eat anything all day as my stomach kept tightening with nerves. She cautiously opened the door, poking her head through the opening as I sat in Hyuuga's embrace.

"Are you all okay?" She asked, stepping closer. I buried my face in Hyuuga's shirt, feeling embarrassed at my mother's over protectiveness.

"Yeah thanks." Kiyoshi replied. "Do you want some help with dinner?"

Kiyoshi was good like that, being able to read a situation and act accordingly. He saw that I just wanted the questions to stop and offered to help my mother so that she'd leave me alone, he'd probably answer all her questions whilst doing so.

As I was left with my captain I felt a strong urge to just cling to him, I needed his comforting touch, I needed him holding me. He ran his fingers up and down my back, humming softly as I pressed myself against him.

"Junpei?"

"Hmm?"

"D-Do you want to keep it?" I whispered. I couldn't help myself, I had to know. I needed to know what he was thinking behind those well-guarded eyes.

"I'm not sure." He replied, tilting his head to catch my eye and offer a reassuring smile. "Part of me wants to."

"But?"

"It's as you said, we're just kids ourselves. I'm also the captain of a high school basketball team that is working hard to win the winter cup. I can't let them down after all their efforts."

"But you still want to?"

He nodded. "I've always liked the idea of raising a child, I didn't think it would play out like this...and I didn't always imagine it would be you...I-I mean, 'cause I'm--"

I kissed him tenderly, cutting him off mid-sentence, smiling into the kiss as I felt him relax. His hands stilled at my waist as I pulled away, one gently coming around my body over my lower abdomen.

"To think that this is..." He seemed to realise what he was doing and averted his gaze from mine. "Sorry Shun, I-I didn't mean...I mean it's up to you if you want to--"

Silencing him with another kiss, I covered his hand with my own.

"I know and it's okay. I want to make the right choice, for all of us." I smiled. "It's just going to take a while to decide."

He returned my smile with his own, it was slightly pained though. "You do know that your pregnancy will be half the time though...and that'll put the due date just after the winter vacation. Which also means that you might not be able to play in the winter cup."

I tried not to think about the horrific biology lessons.

"So we don't have a huge amount of time to decide--plus the winter cup preliminaries are soon and we need everyone in the best condition possible."

"Logically it would be impossible for me to do both right?"

"I doubt Riko would let you play."

I swallowed. "Then there's the answer."

He shot me a confused look.

"We're not keeping it."

 

\---

 

"And what happened to 'let's think about it'?" Kiyoshi asked as I told him. He wasn't angry, more puzzled than anything.

"I thought about it. I'm not ruining Seirin's chances at the Winter cup." I told him, folding my arms across my chest.

My mother said nothing, she probably had a lot to say on the matter but she wasn't saying anything right now.

"Shun, you wouldn't even begin showing until the final, if that." He sighed. "The chances of any harm coming to the baby are low--"

"That's assuming they let me play. We have to submit fitness tests and everything Teppei, coach can't lie on those forms."

He rubbed his face with his hands, Hyuuga was holding my hand on the table but avoiding both our gazes.

"Is there any possibility that you'd change your mind if we got a doctor's opinion?" Kiyoshi asked. "That if they said you would be fine then you'd possibly keep it?"

I read between the lines of what he was saying. "You want me to keep it don't you?"

His kind eyes bore into mine from across the table. A pang of guilt struck me, I didn't want to break his heart but I didn't want to let the rest of my team down. This was more than just a winter cup though, this was our lives we were talking about as well. We wouldn't all be able to go onto university if we had a child, heck, it would be a miracle if I could finish my second year.

My mother chose this moment to voice her opinion.

"Shun, when I first found out I was pregnant with your sister Aya, I wasn't much older than the three of you." She kept her tone soft and inviting. "I remember how stressful it was, the sleepless nights and constant worrying over finances. Your father got two jobs to make sure that we could afford to provide for every possible outcome, both of our parents helped out whenever they were in town, our high-school friends checked in on me when you father worked late."

"What's your point?" I asked.

"My point, is that if you want to keep this baby then the best bet you have is calling on your family and friends. You'd be surprised how just one person offering to cook a few meals for you or help you with your work can lighten the load. Of course, because you're all in high-school still it'll be harder but I'm sure your team-mates will offer their help. You know that you have your family too Shun, and I imagine Teppei's grandparents will be more than happy to lend a hand..."

"But what about money? And we can't all live here mom." I stated, squeezing Hyuuga's hand. "And my exams, my third year? What about that? I can't do school _and_ have a baby."

"These are the things that we have to think about." Hyuuga sighed, rubbing his forehead.

I bit my lip. My heart was racing as all of these thoughts swam around my head, I wanted to cry, I wanted to scream, I wanted to slam my head against a wall just to make it all _stop_.

"Hey." A soft voice in my ear snapped me from the chaos. Kiyoshi's arms wrapped around me and pulled me close to his chest. I didn't even hear him approach. "Hey...come on..."

I buried my face in his shirt, the tears coming before I could stop them. I felt so conflicted. After a few moments I composed myself and pulled away, seeing his soft gaze as he wiped the remnants of my sobbing away.

"Okay. We'll get a doctor's opinion." I breathed. "I want to know. I want to play."

Kiyoshi smiled, kissing my forehead. "Okay."

Hyuuga nodded, moving and kissing my cheek. "Tomorrow's Saturday anyway, so we can all go."

"When are you gonna tell your parents?" Kiyoshi remarked at the captain.

"When we decide if we're keeping it." Hyuuga replied quickly. "No sense in making them worry now."

I couldn't argue with that logic. He wasn't the one carrying what would eventually grow into our child though.

 

\---

 

The benefit of being a male omega at a hospital was that everyone just assumed I was there for a standard check-up. Although I could smell the different scents in the air; alphas, omegas and betas alike. I didn't feel threatened, I had both my alphas and my mother with me, I felt safer than ever actually.

When I got called in by the doctor, a young man who I instantly figured was a beta, I felt my stomach tighten. To start with, it was just me and my mother in there, going through the standard medical checks but when the topic of why I was actually there came up, I panicked and that panic spurred both my lovers to enter.

"Ah...so that's it." The doctor murmured. He couldn't have been much older than us actually, his hair was messy and he seemed very relaxed given the situation. It was a good sign in my mind. "How far along are you?"

I shrugged. "I-I only found out yesterday for sure."

He smiled, opening up a new page in his notebook. "When was your heat?"

"Three weeks ago."

"And you were knotted?"

I felt my face slowly reddening as I answered the questions, some more personal than others. They had to be asked though and if it all helped him come to a conclusion then I would have to deal with it.

"May I take some blood from you to do some tests?" He asked, finishing his written notes. "Nothing dramatic, just so that we have your stats on file."

I didn't like needles. I wasn't afraid of them but I didn't _like_ them either.

Hyuuga sat next to me and held my hand as the needle went in. I tried not to think too much as my skin stung, his thumb rubbed circles into the back of my free hand and he nuzzled my neck in an effort to calm me down.

"All done." The doctor declared, slapping a plaster to my inner arm. "So we'll just run some standard tests and if anything unusual pops up then we'll let you know."

He talked us through a few more bits and pieces, I didn't really pay attention to most of it as it was really directed as my mother more than me.

"Any questions?"

Hyuuga jumped in before I could. "So uh, he's our point guard in our high-school basketball team and we're competing in the winter cup. Will he be okay to play?"

The doctor looked over his notes, rubbing the stubble on his cheek as he mulled it over. I squeezed Hyuuga's hand and buried my face in his neck.

"I think, that as long as your coach is aware and you have a medic on standby - just in case - then he can play. However, you _must_ monitor his fitness carefully and get him seen to if he gets knocked around too much."

We all let out a breath that we didn't realise we were holding in.

"I'll even write a reference for you. I encourage you to come and see me or one of my colleagues just before the tournament begins for a thorough check-up."

"Well we're still deciding if--" Kiyoshi started to say but I had already made up my mind.

"Great, thank-you so much." I smiled, noting how my two lovers exchanged glances. "Um, is there a number I can reach you at if our coach asks for it?"

 

\---

 

"Are you _sure_?" Hyuuga asked for the fifth time.

"Yes Junpei. I want to keep it." I repeated as we got back to my room. Kiyoshi couldn't wipe the smile from his face as he pulled me closer to him on the bed.

"...you seemed so beaten up before though. I don't get it." The captain replied, pulling the drapes shut. "Is this really just because you can play basketball?"

I swallowed, exhaling heavily. "I-I mean there's still a lot to think about but I just think we can make it work...and you both want to keep it right?"

He sighed, regarding the two of us on the bed with a raised eyebrow.

"So that's it? We're all in agreement?"

Kiyoshi kissed my neck and looked at Hyuuga. "I'd like to think so."

"Move over then."

It was a squeeze to have all three of us on the bed; my back pressed against Kiyoshi's chest with his hands on my stomach and Hyuuga's forehead resting against mine, our legs intertwined.

"I love you both." I murmured, the first time I had uttered those three words to either of them. "I-I really want this to work out, I know it's going to be hard and we're gonna have loads of disagreements but I think we can--"

Hyuuga pressed his lips to mine, shutting me up in one gesture. I smiled into the kiss as I felt Kiyoshi's hand slipping under my shirt and massaging my lower abdomen. This was something I could get used to; having the two of them in my bed, making me feel safe and wanted.

"We know, we'll get through it." Kiyoshi hummed. "And I'm sure the team will be with us."

"That's a point. Who's going to tell Riko?"

Hyuuga groaned, that was something that could wait until Monday.


	4. Hormones

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So now that I've caught up with NaNoWriMo I can justify working on this a little bit more! (that doesn't mean updates will be any quicker, it just means I have more time to think)
> 
> Although I still need to do that request...yes.
> 
> Anyway, I was asked this in a comment but I'll address it here too; there are some canon things I will be following but there are a few that I'm going to deviate from just so I don't end up just repeating the entirety of season 3...because where's the fun in that? 
> 
> Also - I'll start getting the puns working soon, I'm actually terrible at them so I have to spend like two hours looking for them, as you can imagine it's a bit time consuming.

Monday morning came sooner than I wanted. I woke up alone on the grey October morning, both my boyfriends had to go home to freshen up and change clothes but there were plans for some sort of turn-taking thing to happen so I'd always have one of them with me.

Regardless, I got up and showered, briefly pondering how I was going to tell my friends, my classmates, my teachers and pretty much anyone else who needed to be told.

"Shun?" My mother called as I pulled on my shirt.

"Yeah?"

She slowly entered my room and passed me a small box. I read the small print and figured they were pills of some sort.

"Just in case your hormones go crazy around the alphas." She explained with a smile. "I know from experience how the first few days will be hectic."

I nodded, figuring I'd read the details later as I slipped them into my bag.

"I want you to be careful. Especially with practice, I know that your coach will look after you but don't be afraid to speak up if you're feeling sick." She stepped closer and cupped my face, making me look her in the eye as she spoke. "You've got to look after yourself."

"I know mom." I murmured, giving her a smile. "And you know Junpei and Teppei will be careful about me too..."

She smiled and kissed my forehead. "Call me if you need anything okay?"

When I was alone again I sent a text to Hyuuga, finding out when he was going to meet me outside my house and walk with me to school. I found my hand subconsciously rubbing my stomach as I tapped the message out, I smiled slightly, thinking about the next few months of change ahead of me.

I was still slightly terrified about it all but the prospect of raising a child was one that numbed the fear.

 

\---

 

"I can _feel_ them staring at me Junpei." I murmured as we walked to class, it wasn't a nice feeling but I couldn't exactly mask my own damn scent. The third years who had all presented were definitely clocking in on me, the second years who matured quickly weren't exactly in the dark either, I was just happy that Hyuuga swore he'd never leave my side.

"I know." He replied, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and pulling me closer to him. "Just ignore them."

Riko raised an eyebrow at me when I handed her the letter from my doctor. Apparently the school had been notified already of my 'situation' and there didn't need to be any discussion at this stage - although when I started showing they were going to discuss home-schooling - so she already knew.

"I'll read it through before practice." She said, putting the letter in her bag. "Welcome back though Izuki." She smiled, putting any paranoia I had over this at bay.

The morning lessons went by without a hitch, I got a few questioning glances from our classmates but for the most part I just got on with my work without much thought. Lunchtime was something else though.

We ended up on the roof, it wasn't too cold and the fresh air was a welcome scent to that of an overcrowded building. Kiyoshi kissed the top of my head as we sat down with Hyuuga, Koganei and Mitobe. It was really beginning to feel like we had some kind of pack unit going on.

"So, I told my grandparents last night." Kiyoshi murmured, pulling his bag in front of him. "And they're not _too_ annoyed."

I laughed, watching him pull out a small package with curiosity, he rarely bought food from home despite his grandmother being a good cook.

"They actually want to see you soon." He added with a smile. "And my nanna made this for you."

I unwrapped the chequered cloth and found a bento box. I couldn't help but smile as I picked up the chopsticks and poked around, it was a simple sweet and sour chicken dish but the love and thought that had gone into it made me a little flustered.

"...she made this for me?" I uttered with a smile.

"Yeah, something about you carrying her great-grandchild and how it's her duty."

Hyuuga smiled and shook his head. "So this is where you get your gentle side from?"

"Of course." Kiyoshi beamed.

"Grand-Mama Kiyoshi raised a gentleman." Koganei remarked, mouth full of food.

I laughed again and began eating as the others made more remarks about Kiyoshi's kind nature. The conversation turned this way and that, ultimately ending up at the state of my pregnancy.

"So you're keeping it?" Koganei asked as I finished the bento.

"Yeah." I replied. "I-I mean... _we_ are."

"Oh! Can I be its godfather? I think I'd be all mafia-like and teach it how to--" Mitobe made some obscure gesture that interrupted Koganei's ramble briefly. "I don't care that I'm not Italian! We have a Japanese Mafia too!"

Hyuuga sighed loudly, Kiyoshi just chuckled as he drew me into his hold and listened to Koganei ramble on about how he'd be a good godfather and would totally _not_ endanger the life of our child in any way, shape or form.

 

\---

 

"So Itzuki." Koganei remarked as he caught me in the hallway between lessons. "How many people actually know you're...keeping it?"

I shrugged. "In school? Probably just the staff and the team right now."

"You sure?"

I raised an eyebrow and nodded.

He looked around quickly before leaning closer. "Because we can smell it."

"Smell?"

"Your scent. It's...different to normal if you get what I'm saying. Now as one omega to another--"

"When did _you_ present?" I asked, not recalling hearing about this before I went into my first heat.

"Don't change the subject!" He chided playfully. "As I was saying, you might want to keep someone with you whenever you're not with your alphas."

"Why?"

"Some alphas might try and take advantage of you - knowing you've gone through one heat and all that jazz. I'm not saying they will but it's a possibility."

I nodded, it wasn't common but there had been a few cases. It tended to affect the female omegas more than the males but that didn't stop some alphas in heat. Judging by the looks I was getting from some students, they were thinking about it.

"Out of curiosity, if you're an omega, has Mitobe presented yet?"

The other tried to keep his smile hidden. "I-uh...I don't think so?"

I raised an eyebrow at him and folded my arms across my chest. "Spill it."

He made to look at a wristwatch that didn't exist. "Oh look at the time! We're gonna be late for class." He smiled and I chuckled, letting him lead me back to our classroom.

With the final lesson and homeroom out of the way, we headed to practice. My hand slipped into Hyuuga's and squeezed slightly, he squeezed back and smiled. Riko was waiting for us as soon as we got out of the changing room, she had a second clipboard with her as she told everyone to warm up.

She read the letter and nodded, apparently happy with whatever the doctor had written.

"So as it's still early days, you can do regular practice." She told me, glancing at her second clipboard. "However, if you feel dizzy or breathless or anything remotely like that I want you to sit out. Don't even ask, just do it."

"Got it coach." I smiled, pausing before going to join my team-mates. "And thanks for being so understanding."

"If Furihata was more experienced then I'd be demanding you stop training sooner but alas, you're all we've really got at Winter Cup level." She remarked. "Just don't die on me Shun."

"I'll do my best Riko."

If anything, practice went better than usual. I shrugged it off as just a good day but even Riko was surprised as we finished our one-on-one drills and took a water break. I felt relatively normal, as if my body was actually enjoying being so active.

The matter of the Winter Cup preliminaries was on everyone else's minds as Riko called us to order, she rattled off about how everyone was going to be in top form for the opening matches and that slacking wasn't an option if we wanted to play.

"We're facing two substantial threats by the looks of things." She stated. "Shuutoku and Kirisaki Daīchi High."

Two team names we've learnt to dread hearing. I swallowed as I thought about how chaotic that was going to be, Kiyoshi placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder as Riko went on about our track record against both teams.

"Of course, even getting to them means we have to beat two other teams. Either way, those are the two that stand between us and the Winter Cup." She continued. "Tomorrow we'll prepare for the other matches. We have two weeks until the opening ceremony."

 

\---

 

"How are you feeling?" Hyuuga asked as I collapsed on my bed in exhaustion.

"Tired." I replied.

"Come on, we have homework."

"If school isn't a place to sleep then home isn't a place to study" I remarked.

He sighed and crawled over me on the bed, coming face to face with me and gently brushing his lips against mine. I pressed up into the kiss, carding my hands through his hair as he smiled and pulled away slowly.

"This isn't homework." He whispered with a smile.

"You can still do me over your desk." I winked.

He paused for a second before laughing, burying his face in the crook of my neck. It took him a few moments to compose himself and regain eye contact, I bit my lip as I slide his glasses off and held his face in my hands.

"...man...even without glasses I can tell how beautiful you are." He breathed. "I really hope the baby gets your good looks."

I chuckled, one of my hands finding his and placing it below my stomach, lifting up my shirt so his skin was against mine.

"It won't be that long..." I whispered.

The look on his face made me smile, I knew there wasn't anything to feel down there yet but just the idea of them both actually being able to touch and listen to our child before it entered this world was enough. He let out a sigh as his thumb rubbed gentle circles into my skin.

"This still isn't homework Shun and you know it." He remarked. "You don't get a free pass just yet."

"You foiled my plan Junpei." I sighed as we started on the mountain of work.

I wondered what my mother was referring to earlier when she was on about with 'the first few days being hectic', but as the evening drew in I started to get an idea. I didn't know what was really pissing me off more; the fact that even I couldn't predict my reaction to trivial things or the fact that Hyuuga couldn't remember how to work my shower.

"I _told_ you last week!" I called, thanking the gods that my family weren't home yet. The last thing I needed was my sisters hearing us bicker like a married couple.

"Well pretend that I'm a moron like Kagami." He called back.

"Who needs to pretend?"

He appeared in the doorway, shirtless and with an amused expression on his face.

"Is someone on his man period?"

I threw a pillow at him. "If you use that expression one more time I'm going to impregnate you!"

"Shun I'm an alpha - that's impossible for you to do." He laughed, catching the pillow and bringing it back to me, drawing me into a heated kiss. I moaned against his lips but pushed him away.

"Go and take your god damn shower." I sighed, rolling over and facing the wall.

He ruffled my hair and left me to it. I found my phone and sent three paragraphs of text to Kiyoshi ranting about everything under the sun - including Junpei's remark about periods - and buried my face in my pillow.

_[Iron Heart] : To be fair, you do sound very hormonal right now love._

_You two are the worst_

_[Iron Heart] : Do you want me to come over? Nanna's making you another bento box._

I snorted, food was something I wanted but having both of them here would probably make me worse.

_It's okay. Junpei's probably gonna force me to do more homework anyway._

I felt the bed dip and a damp forehead press against the back of my neck. I was pulled into a warm hold as lazy kisses were peppered over my shoulder and neck, my phone was forgotten about as I leaned further back into his arms and rolled over enough to capture his lips in a sweeter exchange than the last.

"'m sorry." I mumbled as I ended up facing him. "I-I just..."

He smiled and pressed his lips to mine again, cupping my face as he parted my lips and gently flicked his tongue against mine. My hand went to his shoulder, pulling him closer as I kissed back slowly. I could smell the freshness of the soap on his skin and his sharp, intoxicating scent as his chest rubbed against mine.

"I know babe." He replied, pulling away just enough to speak. "It's okay, I know you're gonna get mad at me for stupid shit a lot."

I smiled, a little embarrassed. "I-uh..."

"Say no more Shun." He whispered, pecking my lips again. "Just know that I love you and I'll do anything to help you adjust to this new life of ours."

"I-I love you too." I breathed. "Man, they never told us about the mood swings...or any of it really."

He smiled and stroked my cheek tenderly. "We'll figure it out babe. Between the three of us, our families and our friends, we're gonna get through this."

"I'm still sorry though." I sighed. "I don't know, I just over-reacted--oh."

"Oh?"

"My mother gave me some pills and said something about hormones." I gestured to my bag, he retrieved it for me and I dug around until I found the small box. The basic gist of the pills were to help control the omega hormones so I could continue going to school and behave like normal, they wouldn't totally stop all the other things like the morning sickness and mood swings but they'd calm me down a little more.

After I read the side effects page three or four times I looked at how many there were; sixteen. I was to take them either once a day or as needed, Hyuuga studied the leaflet with a raised eyebrow but said nothing as I popped one out of the packet.

"So you're taking them as needed?" He asked as I swallowed the small white pill with water.

"Yeah." I replied. "They're prescription I think, or my doctor has to at least sign them off everytime my mother gets them. I don't want to take them unnecessarily."

He nodded. "That's good, I think you should only take them if you're feeling out of it or you're on your period."

"Stop saying that Junpei!" I hit him with my pillow. He laughed and caught hold of the pillow before I hit him again. "You're the worst."

"You're telling me Teppei wouldn't say that?"

"I'm telling you that I don't appreciate it." I smiled slightly, knowing he wasn't being serious in the slightest when he said it but it still annoyed me.

"I'm sorry babe." He moved to kiss my cheek but I pushed him away.

"Never say it again." I uttered. "And you can go and make me dinner to make up for it."

He sighed dramatically but nodded. "Okay, what do you want?"

 

\---

 

We had just finished eating around my kitchen counter when I heard the front door open. The familiar sounds of my sisters loudly conversing about something filtered through the house, along with loud footsteps that were probably Mai's.

Sure enough, my younger sister came running in shouting for me. "Onii-chan!" She called, her face lighting up as she saw me and scampered over to me, hugging my legs as she spoke too quickly for me to understand a word of it.

I laughed and crouched down to pick her up, she was still just small enough for me to hold her comfortably on my hip, she was still babbling away about something as I just smiled sheepishly as Hyuuga.

"Is it true Shun?" She asked, bringing me out of my thoughts.

"Is what true Mai?" I replied, putting on that higher tone that kids are so used to hearing. I could tell Hyuuga was enjoying this far too much as he tried to hide his grin.

"That you're gonna be a daddy?" She looked at me with wide eyes, a similar colour to my own.

"And where did you hear that hm?"

"Aya told me!"

I rolled my eyes, great, _thanks Aya_.

"Did you ask mommy?"

She shook her head, hitting me in the face with one of her pigtails. Hyuuga laughed and I made a mental note to give him a piece of my mind for that.

"Well why don't you go and ask her?"

I set my sister down and she ran off. I sighed heavily and walked into Hyuuga's hold, chuckling at the situation as he rubbed my back comfortingly.

"See, you're great with kids." He remarked.

"Mai's not that hard to deal with Junpei."

"You say that, I don't recall me and my brother being like that."

"That's cause your brother is in middle school so he'd rather be left alone. Actually have you told your family about this yet?"

He stayed silent which answered that question. I shook my head slightly and decided to drop it, his family were slightly more conservative than mine and Kiyoshi's, I knew they wouldn't be over the moon about the whole idea. Still, he had to tell them eventually, they were bound to get suspicious about how many nights he was spending at my house.

"Hey, don't worry about it." He murmured after a while. "I'll sort it out before the Winter Cup."

I had no doubts that he would, however I also knew he didn't fare to well in these situations. As he said before, he wasn't sure if his family knew he was gay. Coming out to them at the same time as confessing he got his best friend pregnant would require a lot of courage from the captain.

"If they react badly then you can stay here." I told him, pulling out of his hold and taking his hands in mine.

He smiled and kissed my forehead. "I actually have a better idea. I just hope Kagami agrees to it."

I raised an eyebrow. "What does he have to do with this?"

He put a finger to my lips. "You just worry about you and the baby." He murmured. "Let me and Teppei sort everything else out."

I smiled and nodded, he gently pulled my face to meet his, a chaste kiss was shared before my older sister walked into the kitchen and cleared her throat.

"Can't you do that in your room?" She remarked with a smile.

I rolled my eyes as she laughed. "Why did you tell Mai?" I asked.

She shrugged, ruffling my hair. "Mom told me and Mai kept asking why we were staying at grandpa's house so I told her that you were pregnant and--"

I groaned loudly and playfully punched her in the arm. "You're the worst Aya."

She nudged me back before looking at Hyuuga. "You look after my baby brother got it? I'm not exactly happy with all of this--" She gestured at my stomach. "--but if you're serious about it then you best take care of him or else."

Hyuuga was a little taken back by my sister's casual warning, he nodded though and waved as she left the kitchen with a bowl of cereal in hand.

"Did I ever tell you that Aya scares me a little?" He asked. "Also why is she eating cereal at eight in the evening?"

I shrugged. "Dunno. I'm tired though, come and cuddle me to sleep?"

I knew I'd have to finish off my homework during morning homeroom but that was pushed to the back of my mind as he turned the lights out in my room and crawled into bed with me. He pressed light kisses to my neck as he pulled me close to him under the covers, hands finding mine and fingers linking together as I sighed in content.

He probably wasn't even tired but he made no objections, murmuring sweet nothings in my ear as I began to drift away. The last thing I was aware of was him telling me he loved me.


	5. Birds of a feather

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not neglecting the puns, I'm just really bad at making them so that's why there are a distinct lack of them-- I'll get to it eventually.

 

The first two matches of the preliminaries went by quickly, almost no trouble. We were feeling optimistic as we prepared for our third match, although that optimism was short lived for me.

I hadn't had a bout of morning sickness for a while, my body had somewhat calmed down since I threw myself into basketball again, but as Riko started briefing us on how to play against Shuutoku I felt light headed.

"Coach, do mind if I get some air?" I asked, she gave me a concerned look but nodded.

I expected Hyuuga or Kiyoshi to demand that they come with me but Riko wasn't about to let all three of us go. So I went alone, walking the corridors of the sports complex. The sounds of the crowd piling into the arena didn't help my head, and neither did the slamming doors from the hallway I was walking down.

"Izuki?" A familiar voice asked, I turned and found myself face-to-face with Takao. He smiled in that 'we may be rivals but we're still friends' way and folded his arms across his chest. "Would've thought that you'd be in the changing room."

"Y-Yeah...I just need some air." I told him, smiling back.

"Oh? Well do you want some company? We still got a while before our match."

I wasn't sure if it was a good idea but then again, Takao and I were still friends to a degree regardless of the fact we were rivals. I nodded and we continued out onto one of the balconies that overlooked the complex gardens. There was a weird scent coming from Takao and I couldn't quite pinpoint what it was, he didn't have any marks on his neck indicating he was claimed but he wasn't overwhelming me with the scent of an alpha either.

It wasn't really important though as I leaned against the railing and inhaled deeply. He watched me curiously as he rambled about his team-mates getting mad at Midorima for being so rude to them since presenting, how it was a little tiresome and how he had to calm him down a lot.

"So the miracles mature faster?" I asked, most people presented in their second year but it wasn't that uncommon for some first years to mature a little faster than others. It just made everything a little bit more tense if they did.

"I guess? I mean, I heard Kaijou's ace presented within two weeks of joining their team, I wouldn't be surprised of Touou's has as well. Shin-chan tried to keep his quiet but that only lasted so long during his heat."

I laughed. "So what about you?"

He snorted and nudged my side playfully. "Why would you care? I can smell that you're an omega."

If it had been anyone else then I probably would've been embarrassed but Takao - despite being a first year - had become a good friend over the summer, especially during the training camp when both our teams 'accidentally' ended up at the same hotel. I shrugged, hoping that was all he could smell on me.

"Well you alluded to you being the one to calm the alpha down so, forgive me for assuming that you're his omega."

Takao laughed, leaning on the railing next to me. "You're funny. No I'm not technically _his_ omega. He doesn't want to commit to that kind of thing apparently, I respect that and so we just help each other through the heats and nothing more."

"Nothing more eh?" I remarked. "You never know."

"I can dream can't I?" He murmured. "Maybe after a few more heats he'll reconsider but I'll just settle for this. I'm not complaining at all."

"I bet you aren't."

We talked for a while about this and that, my light-headedness had eased and I felt better, maybe it was because I was talking to someone so carefree as Takao, maybe it was the fresh air or maybe it was the lack of alphas. My phone started buzzing in my pocket, I took it out and answered.

"So your two alphas are getting worried." Koganei told me. "They're convinced you've been kidnapped by a rival...so you might wanna get back here."

I rolled my eyes but smiled. "Yeah, tell them I'll be back in ten."

Takao smiled as I ended the call. "Two alphas?"

I sighed and vaguely explained the chaos that was my first heat, vaguely as in I left out the part where I got pregnant in the locker room. He seemed a little unnerved by the story but found some humour in my story-telling.

"So you have two alphas." He clarified. "How does that even work?"

I bit my lip. "We have our ways."

With the match drawing closer we started to walk back inside, passing various other teams as we navigated past other changing rooms. I kept getting odd glances from them and Takao picked up on it, he paused and gave me a questioning look.

"Something's off about your scent. I'm not talking about you being claimed by two alphas either." He murmured, invading my personal space slightly. "And people keep staring at you."

I swallowed, it's not that I was keeping it from my friend it was more that I was keeping it from my _rival_. I shrugged and said nothing. He seemed to be trying to work out what was 'off' about my scent as he backed up slightly.

"...you're preg--"

I covered his mouth with my hand as another team passed, he looked mildly annoyed at my action but waited until I deemed it okay for him to speak.

"So who's is it?" He raised an eyebrow at me as my hand fell away.

"I-uh...we don't actually...know." I confessed. "But they're both committed to it so we don't really care right now."

I wasn't sure how he was taking it, he just regarded me with a slightly troubled expression before chuckling and pulling me into a hug. "Congrats Izuki." He whispered in my ear.

"Thanks." I mumbled as he pulled away. "Uh, can I ask that you don't tell your team? At least not until after our match if you have to...I-I'm not supposed to tell anyone outside the team until after the Winter cup."

He nodded, understanding my situation. "I'll try. Shin-chan has a knack for knowing if I'm not telling him something though and--obviously he's the only alpha I have so I kinda..." He trailed off, gesturing to the air. "I'll do my best. Although I'm not treating you any differently on that court." He grinned.

"I wouldn't have it any other way." I replied. "We're both here to win after all."

 

\---

 

Takao was true to his word, if anything he seemed more focused on beating us. I couldn't tell if he had told his team-mates but it didn't seem to matter, Shuutoku was just as good if not better than when they last played us.

Half-time was a chance for me to regain my breath, it had been a brutal match in the way of points but we were keeping up barely. Kuroko had to be subbed out for Mitobe after Takao shut him down with his hawk eye, something even I couldn't prevent, and I was beginning to feel tired.

"Are you still good?" Riko asked me as I panted. "Cause we can't really afford to put Furihata in as point guard so we'd have to shuffle Kiyoshi--"

"I'm fine coach." I interrupted, gaining a concerned glance from Hyuuga. "Just let me play."

She didn't seem convinced but she had to take my word for it. I was under strict instructions to call for a substitute if I felt dizzy but right now I just felt the buzz of the match coursing through me. Koganei handed me a towel to wipe up the sweat, I smiled at him as Riko launched into her second half plan.

Just as the break ran out Kiyoshi pulled me into a hug, ruffling my hair as he pressed a kiss to my head. I pushed him away gently and told him to quit being so lovey-dovey in the middle of a match.

The match only continued to mount pressure, neither side was backing down throughout the third quarter and as we approached the last minutes of play in the fourth it was clear that we needed to pull something out of thin air to win. The referee's whistle sounded and Kuroko was back on the court, Takao caught my eye and raised an eyebrow but I gave him no response. I couldn't be sure what Kuroko was planning, I just had to be ready regardless.

It was all a blur really, the vanishing drive passed both Midorima and Takao, passing to Kiyoshi who attempted a dunk but got disrupted by the ace. Thankfully for us, Midorima conceded a foul so we got two free throws. The plan that Hyuuga came up with was to make the first but miss the second, get the rebound and Kagami would dunk it so we'd be level with them.

It was so crazy but it might work.

Kiyoshi followed through with the plan, getting the first basket but missing the second. Kagami caught the rebound and made to dunk the ball but Midorima recovered to block it. For a heart-stopping moment we thought it was all over, we thought that the ace had succeeded in stopping us.

The klaxon sounded. We were level at 104 points each. It was a tie. The final whistle blew a second later and it really was all over. There would be no overtime.

"Well, that went a little different to how I'd hoped." Takao remarked, beside me suddenly. "Well played."

"Same to you." I smiled. "Good luck."

"We don't need luck but thanks." He shrugged, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "You just take care of yourself and that baby." He murmured before quickly breaking away from me.

We lined up and bowed before heading back to the changing room. I found my phone buzzing in my bag with a text.

_[Hawkeye] : So can I tell them now? Cause Shin-chan's starting to get suspicious._

I rolled my eyes. _If you must._

Hyuuga pressed a kiss to the back of my neck, arms gently wrapping around me as the rest of our team got changed around us.

"How are you feeling?" He hummed.

"Tired. I'd appreciate just falling asleep as soon as we get home."

"I dunno how Kagami will feel about that."

The ace had been coerced into helping us, by that I mean Hyuuga had explained the situation of none of our homes being ideal for all of us staying with each other. Kagami of course had been reluctant, even a bit weirded out about the whole thing but somehow he agreed, whether Kuroko had a hand in it was unknown to me.

So we had been staying at the first year's apartment, it was spacious enough for the four of us to live there although we did have to keep popping home to get things and check in with our parents. Kagami warmed up to the idea, he made us agree to not have sex whilst he was around - and to clean up afterwards 'or else' - and to leave the team hierarchy at the front door. We were all on first name basis as long as we lived there.

It was a strange arrangement but it worked.

We left the complex, not really wanting to think about who our next opponent was and just thinking about whatever Kagami was going to cook for dinner. Kuroko often joined us, mainly because Kagami felt more comfortable with him around - Kiyoshi had already suggested to me that the two of them would end up pairing up whenever they presented - and that evening was no exception.

The apartment was spacious, it was always kept clean despite Kagami being the only resident until now, and it was already like a second home to me. The guest room had a double bed which was much appreciated by the three of us and the bathroom was larger than most.

"So what do you guys want to eat?" Kagami asked as he surveyed the contents of his fridge. "I'm starving."

"I'm craving pork." I told him, sitting at the island counter. "Do you have any Taiga?"

He smiled. "No but I can run to the store to get some. What do you want me to do with it? Stew? Udon? Stir fry?"

"I don't care." I smiled back.

"Make some Gyozas." Kuroko suggested. "And miso ramen."

"Ooh yes!"

Kagami sighed dramatically and closed the fridge. "Okay, I'll be back in fifteen then." He retrieved his wallet and made his exit, shouting to Kiyoshi to not use up all the hot water in the shower.

Kuroko and I moved to the couch, Hyuuga had fallen asleep in the guest room so it was just the two of us in the lounge. He had taken a vested interest in my pregnancy, I was pretty sure that he was an omega but he hadn't said anything yet to confirm my suspicions.

"So how do you feel?" He asked as I flicked through TV channels.

"Alright, I'm really paranoid I'm going to start showing during the winter cup..." I replied, folding my legs underneath me on the couch. I glanced down my stomach and smiled slightly. "It's still a little bit surreal that there's another life growing inside of me."

He chuckled. "I can imagine."

The conversation with Takao was still fresh in my mind, I figured we had nothing else to talk about.

"Do you know if the miracles mature faster than normal teenagers?" I asked.

His soft smile wavered slightly as he sighed. "We do." He replied. "The first happened during our final year."

"Oh?"

"Aomine-kun was the first. He became rather bullish around us, his skills improving drastically and it meant the rest of us could hardly keep up with him."

"...Kise and Midorima have only just--"

"I know." Kuroko cut in. "They're the last."

"So you're all..."

He nodded. "They're nearly all alphas."

"And you?"

He smiled. "Omega, Kise-kun is too surprisingly, he didn't take it too well from what I've heard."

It didn't shock me, I nodded and thanked whatever deity bought Kuroko to our team that he was an omega. I didn't think I'd be able to cope with _another_ alpha.

"I reckon Kagami-kun's an alpha." He remarked. "If he's really one of us that is."

"Oh _great_." I sighed, gaining a laugh from the other. "More alphas."

"If anything he'll be protective of you."

A voice from the guest room caught my attention, Kuroko seemed too interested in the TV to care. I raised an eyebrow before going to investigate. I pressed my ear to the door before closing my hand around the handle, muffled voices could be heard and I had a vague idea of what was occurring.

Slowly, I opened the door, sure enough I caught sight of my captain lying on his stomach as Kiyoshi's hands worked to ease the tension from his body. I closed the door and simply watched the two of them in the dim light, the way the centre's hands rubbed large circles into the other's shoulders, massaging the sore muscles from today's match.

Hyuuga would sigh in content, even let a moan slip from his lips as Kiyoshi's hands moved down his back. I found myself biting my bottom lip as I watched him relax more and more.

"Do you want to join us Shun?" Kiyoshi murmured, glancing over at me. I exhaled quickly and nodded, pacing over to the bed and crawling next to Hyuuga. He took my hand in his and brought it to his lips, kissing my wrist as Kiyoshi leaned down and nuzzled his neck.

"Lay back." Hyuuga told me, I was caught slightly off guard but nodded, propping myself up on my elbows as I lay on the bed. He nodded to Kiyoshi as he rolled off the bed and paced into the hallway. I raised an eyebrow at the other alpha as he crawled up the bed to meet me, lips pressing against mine softly as his hand slipped under my shirt.

"It's warm." He breathed, fingers brushing against bare skin. I was confused for a few moments until I realised what he was referring to.

"There's nothing to show for it yet though." I replied, gazing at him. "I haven't felt anything either."

He smiled and hummed, lowering his head to my stomach as he pushed my shirt up a little more. He pressed tender kisses to my stomach, humming softly as I just watched him with a heated face, trying not to think about how he was between my legs right now.

"You okay love?" He asked, small smile on his face.

"Yeah."

He rested his head against my thigh, running his fingers over my stomach slowly. I reached down and pressed my own fingers to the sensitive area, it was warmer than usual like he said. His fingers intertwined with mine, I smiled and coaxed him to lean over me, tilting my head upwards to brush my lips against his.

A small whimper passed between us as my other hand reached up to tangle in his hair, he pressed his chest against mine as I pulled him down. He gently parted my lips, cradling my face in his hand as he smiled into the kiss.

A knock on the door made us part, he pulled my shirt down as he rolled away from me and answered the door. I heard Kagami's voice and figured he was just about to start cooking, I was tired though, the adrenaline from today's match had faded and the dim room was making it tempting to fall asleep. I found myself drifting, letting my eyes slip shut as I sighed. There was a voice but I didn't stir.

"He looks so angelic doesn't he?"

"Yeah..." Another voice hummed. I felt the bed dip and I caught Hyuuga's scent as he led next to me, fingers carding through my hair gently. I whimpered slightly and curled into his hold as he lightly tugged on my hair.

"How long will dinner be?" He asked.

"About an hour? That's what Taiga said anyway."

"We should let him rest then."

Hyuuga's arms wrapped around me, I didn't protest, only resting my forehead against his chest, feeling safe and warm, his steady heartbeat gradually lulling me to sleep. I must've been asleep for longer than an hour, it was dark outside when I startled awake suddenly, catching Hyuuga off guard. He chuckled and cupped my face tenderly, swiping his thumb over my bottom lip.

"It's okay, I'm here." He whispered when he noted my quickened breathing.

I blinked a few times, sighing heavily as the last remnants of sleep fell away from my mind. My stomach growled in protest at not being fed which made him raise an eyebrow at me.

"Come on then, Taiga finished cooking about ten minutes ago so there's probably food on the counter for us."

I nodded, trying to shake the bizarre dream from my thoughts as he tugged me to follow him into the main area of the apartment. The smell of freshly cooked pork greeted me as I stepped through the door, Kiyoshi smiled warmly as he handed me the bowl of ramen and a set of chopsticks, Kuroko and Kagami were sat on the couch watching TV so we joined them. It was already feeling more like a family here, in a weird way I couldn't think of a better place to be.

"Oi shut up." Kagami snapped as the reporter on screen declared they were going to talk about the high school basketball news now. We were all ears as she smiled at the camera and went through the day's matches and how the preliminaries were shaping up.

_And today a tie between Seirin and Shuutoku high means that both teams will have to play another match to determine who will go through to the Winter Cup._  
  
_Shuutoku will play fellow King of Tokyo Senshinkan High, whilst Seirin will play Kirisaki Daīchi High, a match that promises to be an exciting clash between two of the Uncrowned Kings--_

Kiyoshi turned the TV off abruptly. Kagami choked on his ramen and started protesting but a nudge in the ribs from Kuroko ceased his outcry as Kiyoshi and Hyuuga regarded each other uneasily.

"...is there something wrong?" Kagami asked once he had stopped choking.

"Kirisaki Daīchi High are the reason we lost last year to the three kings of Tokyo." Hyuuga replied. "They're the ones who put Teppei in hospital and effectively doomed us from that match onwards."

I didn't like the vibe in the room, it was bad enough when these two annoyed each other during practice but this was something else entirely. Playing a team like Kirisaki Daīchi could only spell trouble not just for the team but for me, there would be almost no hiding the fact that I was pregnant from the likes of Hanamiya. Couple that with his vendetta against any passionate player _and_ his hatred for Kiyoshi...it was going to carry the pressure of a final match.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No prizes for guessing what the next chapters is about~
> 
> And before I get asked - no I'm not saying exactly what'll happen, you're all gonna have to wait and see :P


	6. Rising Tension

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh lord, this chapter man.  
> I ended up in the 'zone' whilst writing this, literally my brain was working so fast that my fingers could hardly keep up so I'd say 3/4 of this chapter got written in just under two hours (which is bloody impressive).
> 
> Stuff happens. NaNoWriMo is officially over so now I can (kind of) take it easy and focus on this a little bit more.

"I don't like this."

"Look, it'll be uncomfortable for now but you're just gonna have to live with it Izuki."

"How do you even wear one of these every day?"

Riko gave me an unimpressed look. "Just put the sports bra on."

I sighed, taking the foreign garment from her and putting it against my chest. It didn't seem like it would fit but the material would stretch...and probably nearly suffocate me at first, then again it was just a precaution ahead of the next few weeks. My body was developing quickly and Riko suggested I get used to wearing one before I physically had to as my chest wasn't going to be flat for much longer, in fact I had already noted a slight growth which freaked me out for a few moments.

"Thanks...for looking out for me y'know." I sheepishly told her as I pulled my jersey on top of it. "The guys wouldn't have thought about it."

"That's why you need me around." She smiled. "Just breathe naturally okay? It's gonna feel weird as hell I know, but as soon as the match is done you can take it off for the day. Remember, this is just so you can get used to it."

I nodded, rolling my shoulders slightly to try and get used to the tightness, it wasn't too bad after I took a few deep breaths on the way back to the main changing room. There was a buzz about the team despite who our opponent was, after telling the first years about Hanamiya's exploits last year though, it set a different vibe to the pre-match talk.

"Whatever you do, do not let them push you to make mistakes." Riko told us. "We know they play dirty so keep your wits about you when you're out there."

"As for Hanamiya--"

"Leave him to me." Kiyoshi stated.

"Hell no." Hyuuga snapped. "No, I'm not having him put you in the hospital again."

Riko rolled her eyes and coughed loudly. "You will go out and go with the play we agreed on during practice."

There was little more to address in that moment, we went through the plan of play one last time before heading out on the court. Just as we entered the tunnel Kiyoshi's hand slipped into mine and he tugged me close to him.

"Be careful around Hanamiya." He whispered in my ear. "Don't let him get to you."

The sound of the crowd drowned out any response I had, we made our way onto our court and started warming up. The mixture of scents in the air set me on edge, there was something that wasn't quite right about all of this. Hyuuga wasn't making any of his shots, regardless of where he was making them from and it seemed that Kagami and Kuroko also felt a little off.

"Do you sense it?" I murmured to Koga.

"Kind of?" He replied, casting his eyes over our team-mates. "They're tense."

"I mean, it's natural."

"I'm concerned Kiyoshi and Hyuuga will take it too far."

I nodded, watching as the ball rolled over towards Hanamiya. The captain picked it up and smirked as Kiyoshi walked over to get it, the tension on the court was building like a thunder storm, it was only a matter of time before the first sparks of lightning flew.

The first quarter seemed to go rather smoothly for us, it was a little unnerving but the rest of the team were rolling with it. I couldn't help but be more conscious of my breathing as the tight material pulled on my skin, I didn't let it affect me as I called out plays and passed with little thought.

That was until I felt a sharp jab in my side. I lost my footing and fell to the floor, the referee didn't seem to notice as our opponents scored. Hyuuga pulled me to my feet again, shooting me a concerned look as I gripped his hand.

"I saw that." He uttered. "That bastard."

I was confused, I followed his gaze over his shoulder and saw Hanamiya smirking, putting two and two together, it was easy to determine what had happened.

"I'll have to keep my senses sharp then--"

"Use your eagle eye to evade their attacks."

"Junpei, I can't do that and play point guard."

He sighed, ruffling my hair. "Okay. Just look after yourself."

Play resumed, I did focus more of my time on evading jabs and shoves as I passed and called out orders. It seemed to be over until Kagami got elbowed and lost his temper as the other team scored. Kuroko defused the situation somewhat by tripping our ace before he could lash out, I caught Kiyoshi's eye as we walked to restart play.

"So, has it really been a year?" A honeyed voice remarked. I found myself face-to-face with Hanamiya, I expected his scent to be like his personality; foul and overwhelming but there was something...familiar about it.

The mark on his neck gave it away. The scent I couldn't quite pinpoint though.

"It has." I uttered through gritted teeth. "Nice to see your play style hasn't evolved much beyond thuggery."

He faked being hurt by my words. "I would've thought an omega like you would side with _me_." He grinned, raising an eyebrow at me. "Especially given your state--"

The referee's whistle ended our conversation but it had lasted long enough to put me on edge. He knew. He knew and he was going to use it against me. My body shook slightly as I tried to put it out of my mind, I was too wrapped up in my paranoia to notice the way that the opposition was playing until it was too late.

My vision was blurry as I focused on the bright lights. Kiyoshi's voice was faint but it was there, as was his hand on my cheek.

"Shun?" He called, panic clear in his voice.

"...what's the score?"

He looked borderline hysterical as he processed my question. "Shun, how many fingers is Koga holding up?"

I squinted, sure enough Koganei was holding out his hand.

"...three?"

"Okay so he's not completely out of it."

I wasn't on the court, that much was clear, so where was I? The changing room? Infirmary? Hospital? I moved to sit up but Koganei pushed my shoulders down gently.

"No, you're staying here." He told me. "Kiyoshi you should get back out there before--"

The door burst open and Riko's voice came in, I wasn't sure what the context of the conversation was but I gathered that Kiyoshi wanted to swap the passage of play but Riko was reluctant to let him. Koganei kept my attention on him as he shined a light in my eyes, my legs ached and I couldn't figure out why.

"...what happened?" I murmured as Kiyoshi and Riko took the argument outside the room.

"No-one really knows." He replied quietly. "Everyone was focused on the scoring basket so they didn't know what happened to you until the restart when you just remained on the floor. Mitobe did mention that Hanamiya looked rather pleased with himself after you were first carried to the side--"

"Hanamiya..." I whispered, trying to think about the turn of events. "Koga...K-Koga the baby."

He nodded. "It's okay. You're both okay." He smiled. "Riko ordered a check within two minutes of us getting you in here."

"Check?"

"Don't worry Itzuki." He told me. "Just rest up okay?"

I blinked, reaching for my stomach and sighing in relief when I could feel no bruising or pain at all. The only areas that really ached were my legs and my head. The argument outside had subsided, the drone of the crowd indicated that it was half time or something which begged the question; how long had I been out?

"I guess I'm not playing the rest of the match?"

Koganei gently ruffled my hair. "I mean, coach will probably come back and check on you so ask her then."

 

\---

 

"I really don't want you playing Izuki." Riko told me as I sat on the edge of the bed. My head was bandaged much like Kuroko's was when he played that first match against Kaijou, my vision was back to normal but my legs were kind of achy still.

I wanted to play. We were trailing by ten points with the lack of a solid point guard and we only had one quarter to make it up. My team needed me.

"Hyuuga's gone into clutch time and Teppei's covering the entire inside zone, he's getting pretty beat--"

"So that's why you need me to play!" I snapped. "Riko come _on_. They're worried about me and they're making stupid decisions without me there."

Riko exchanged glances with Koganei. "If you go out there and they turn on you again then I'm pulling you straight out." She stated. "I mean it Shun. I'm not going to let two of my second years pull that kind of shit."

"Two?" I asked.

She rolled her eyes before turning swiftly. "Come on, we have two minutes before the last quarter."

Koganei gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze as we got back to the court. Kiyoshi's body was battered and bruised from whatever carnage he had been through, Hyuuga seemed colder than usual and the rest of the team seemed drained.  
   
"You are _not_ playing." Hyuuga told me as soon as he realised what my intentions were. "No, we can handle--"

"You're ten points down, your centre is also your point guard _and_ he's playing bait." I cut him off, giving him a hard stare. "Like or not _Captain_ you need me."

There were a few moments of silence between us, I couldn't gauge what he was thinking as he snorted and shook his head. Kiyoshi winced as an ice pack was placed against his taped up knee, Kagami wasn't even looking at anyone, he was staring at the floor as his arms trembled.

"He's right senpai." Kuroko's voice shattered the silence.

Hyuuga sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Fine. But if that bastard orders another move on you then I'm not responsible for my actions."

Riko's fist connected with the back of his head. "You're not doing anything of the sort!" She yelled before turning to the rest of the team. "Look, pull your heads together. Kuroko, your passes will have to be flawless now, Kiyoshi will still control the inner zone whilst Kagami and Hyuuga focus on scoring."

She then turned to me. "Do you think you can steal the ball from them?"

I nodded. "I-I'll do my best."

We had a few precious seconds left to collect our thoughts, Hyuuga stepped closer to me and lightly brushed his lips against my ear.

"Don't talk to me like that again, _ever_." He whispered as the buzzer sounded. I swallowed and as he backed away I saw no trace of the lover in his eyes, only the alpha and the captain.

"You bounce back quickly." Hanamiya remarked to me as we waited for the tip off. "Good to have you back." He grinned.

"Fuck off." I uttered, staring at him, he stared back with a certain excitement that made me feel sick.

I received the ball and immediately made to pass to Kiyoshi, he read it and tried to steal it but Kuroko deflected it to Hyuuga who went on to score easily. Hanamiya snorted, his eyes flicked from Hyuuga to me and then to Kiyoshi.

"...so you three have a thing? How cute."

"Will you just shut the fuck up?" I snapped, losing my cool slightly. "Why do you fucking care? Are you jealous? Does seeing someone happy make you feel dead inside or some shit like that?"

I wasn't sure why I thought it was a good idea to antagonise Hanamiya but I was just losing my patience with him. This wasn't about basketball, this wasn't about last year, this wasn't about Kiyoshi's injury. This was about Hanamiya being a literal piece of shit.

"Ooh...touched a nerve did I?" He smirked as I glared at him. "Or did you hit your head too hard when you fell earlier?"

A hand on my shoulder signified another's presence. Kiyoshi stepped between us, his body marked all over from the beating he had suffered, he seemed calm but he was very good at keeping his emotions in check when it mattered. Unlike someone else.

"Makoto, I meant what I said y'know, about me protecting Seirin." He remarked.

"Psh. Protecting your bitch more like."

"You and I both know your problem is with me, not him, not Seirin. Me."

I was confused but I was more furious at being referred to as a bitch. The referee signalled for us to resume play. Kuroko evaded all of Hanamiya's steals, managing to get the ball to both Hyuuga and I to shoot, Kagami was dunking at every opportunity that he could get whilst Kiyoshi continued to put himself in harm’s way to ensure our survival.

Victory would just be a nice bonus at this point.

I ended up face-to-face with Hanamiya again, neither of us said anything at first but there was that malice in his eye again.

"Wouldn't it be a shame if Teppei ended up in hospital again?" He murmured

"You wouldn't leave this building alive." I stated, he raised an eyebrow before moving away too quickly for me to react.

Hyuuga yelled something to me but my thoughts were too clustered to make any sense of what he said. Hanamiya drove past Kuroko and scored, pausing to sneer at Kuroko, what he hadn't banked on was Kuroko using his ignite pass to fire the ball all the way to Kagami from the back line, the ace dunked the ball with almost no effort.

It was the turning point we all needed, victory was in our sights.

 

\---

 

Riko took me to the infirmary before I could change, she wanted to properly check me over whilst everyone else cooled off. She didn't say it but I knew she wanted Hyuuga to calm down. Once she was satisfied that I was okay - save for a bit of bruising on my legs - she told me that she was going to see to Kiyoshi and that I should wait for Hyuuga to get out of clutch time before talking to him.

Of course, I didn't listen to her. He was my best friend, my lover, my alpha, of course I wasn't going to ignore him.

As I made my way back I caught sight of Hanamiya, he was with someone just a few feet away from our changing room door. If I didn't know any better I would've said it was Imayoshi. I paused, the familiar scent from earlier appeared in my thoughts, many questions started bubbling from how the two of them met to how they could possibly have a stable relationship with their personalities...

I had my own problems though, Hyuuga was yelling about something as I entered the changing room, Tsuchida and Koganei were trying to calm him down but to no avail. The first years gave me a worried glance as our captain slammed his fist against the lockers in frustration.

"Junpei?"

He whirled around, all the fury gone from him as he stepped forward and cupped my face in his hands. "A-Are you okay?" He murmured.

I swallowed, this day had been a whirlwind of emotions and I just wanted to collapse to the floor already. After a few agonizing seconds I shrugged and brushed his hands away. "I-uh...I need to shower." I told him, noting how he wasn't out of his kit yet and the sweat was still collecting on his skin. "You could uh...join me."

He smiled slightly but shook his head. "No...no I'll take one at home." He replied. "You go ahead."

I nodded, not looking at anyone else as I walked around the lockers towards the showers. The cold water was heavenly on my heated body, exhaustion catching up with me as I sighed heavily and fought back the tears. The murmur of conversation floated through, the rest of the team were at ease it seemed.

"Senpai?"

"Kuroko." I acknowledged. "What's up?"

"I'm worried about you and--"

"Don't worry." I faked a laugh. "We're okay, things just got a little heated and we'll probably smooth it out tonight."

Kuroko didn't say anything. He waited for me to finish before handing me a towel and lingering around the area with me as I got changed. The rest of the team were waiting outside, Kiyoshi looking worse for wear but greeting me with a soft kiss on the cheek, Hyuuga took my hand hesitantly in his as we made our way back to Kagami's place. The ace and Kuroko decided they were going to Maji burger so we could have the apartment to ourselves - probably orchestrated by Kuroko himself so we could sort out our domestic problems in peace.

It was strange to not be really talking to either of them, I felt so tired but so upset about the match - even though we won and we're going to the Winter cup - it just felt like a lot of things came to light during the struggle.

Hyuuga took a shower, leaving Kiyoshi and I to figure out what was even going on. He led down on the bed, wincing with each movement, and I sat trailing my fingers over each bruise and pulled muscle. Trailing fingers turned to light kisses with his hands carding through my hair, the bandage on my head having been removed now. He took his shirt off, showing the severity of his wounds.

"Teppei...why?" I whispered. "And why are you and that prick on a first name basis?"

He gave me a weak smile. "We used to be on the same team remember?"

"So? You don't hear Kuroko and the other miracles being like that."

He lightly laughed, wincing as he exhaled. "We have a history Shun, but old habits die hard."

I stared at him, worrying my bottom lip between my teeth. "...you two?"

"It was a short thing...mainly to try and get him to behave...nothing serious happened but it was enough for us to end up on a first name basis."

It didn't really trouble me, it was just another thing to think about as I sighed and led down next to him. He rolled onto his side and gazed at me, stroking my cheek before his hand trailed to my stomach.

"Are you okay after everything? You went down pretty hard." He murmured.

"Riko's advised I go talk to my doctor tomorrow, she's written up an account of what happened and what treatment she gave me...so yeah."

"Do you want us to come with?"

"...I think Junpei's mad at me for playing." I mumbled, averting my gaze.

Kiyoshi smiled, rubbing my stomach reassuringly. "Not mad, worried. He would wrap you up in bubble wrap if he could...he just knew that you went down hard and he actually had Hanamiya by the front of his jersey until Kagami pried them apart."

"...when I told him he needed me to play he told me to never speak to him like that again. The look in his eyes...I haven't seen it before."

"That's what an alpha is I'm afraid. When we get worked up - especially ones with short tempers like him - we can get very territorial."

The door opened and Hyuuga padded in silently, shirtless but wearing sweatpants, holding his glasses in his hand. He glanced at us briefly as he set his glasses on top of the dresser and started checking his phone. I watched him, noticing how bruised his back was and felt somewhat guilty about how I had spoken to him earlier.

"Junpei?" I called, he glanced over but said nothing. Was he really giving me the cold shoulder? "Junpei please..."

He set his phone down and made his way to the bed, crawling next to me with a calm expression on his face. Kiyoshi raised an eyebrow but said nothing as Hyuuga cradled my face in his hand and swiped his thumb over my skin.

"I'm sorry." He murmured. "I'm sorry I spoke to you like that...I-I didn't want you to get hurt and my instincts just went crazy. I know that's not really an excuse but I don't want you to be mad at me."

I gazed at him, leaning into his hand and smiling slightly. "I'm sorry too, for being so stubborn and losing focus. And for making you worry."

He snorted. "It's okay babe." He tenderly kissed me before his attention went to Kiyoshi. "As for you."

Kiyoshi puts his hands up in surrender. "I'm sorry for putting myself on the line again."

"I was actually going to thank you but whatever." Hyuuga remarked. "You look sore though, do you want us to do anything?"

The other smiled, clasping his hands behind his head. "I'm okay."

"That's code for 'I want love too'." I uttered to Hyuuga.

"Is it really?" He asked sceptically.

"I believe so."

"I mean, I wouldn't say no." Kiyoshi hummed, glancing between the two of us.

I moved so I was straddling him, leaning forwards and delicately kissing his chest, mindful of the bruising. He carded a hand through my hair and smiled as Hyuuga lay beside him and nuzzled his neck. I kissed my way up his chest, rolling my hips forward slightly as I slowly pressed my lips to his, his hand rested on my hip as his other hand found Hyuuga's.

There was a light touch to my lower back, a hand slipped under my shirt and fingers danced along my spine, causing me to moan slightly. I heard Hyuuga's small chuckle as he lightly bit at my neck, Kiyoshi's hand on my hip moved to my ass, gently squeezing and pulling another moan from me.

"What is this?" I remarked with a smile as I broke away from his lips. "I thought you were getting the love?"

He smiled back and raised an eyebrow. "And what if I want to give some in return?"

Hyuuga hummed in agreement, I sat up and caught my captain's lips with mine, it was a sloppier one that was fuelled by the day's emotional turmoil. He coaxed my lips apart with his tongue, panting into my mouth as he held me like fine china, afraid to let me go but afraid to hold me too tightly.

Kiyoshi whimpered slightly at the sight of us, after Hyuuga let me go I immediately leaned back down and held myself above him, smiling as both his hands ran down my back.

"You feeling the love yet Teppei?" I whispered.

"I could get used to seeing you two like that." He murmured. "Better yet..." He pulled me down, I grazed his lips with my teeth as he parted them with a gasp.

"You make such wonderful noises Teppei." Hyuuga hummed from beside us.

I smiled and broke away from the other's lips, gesturing for him to pick up where I left off. He shook his head at me but went with it, he was slightly rougher with Kiyoshi than with me, small hisses and gasps passing between them as their alpha instincts no doubt kicked in slightly.

After a while of us trading kisses, feather-like touches and sweet murmurings, we led there together. I was usually the one in the middle but because of his injuries, Hyuuga and I led either side of Kiyoshi, the centre wrapped an arm around each of us and smiled.

"I could get used to this treatment." He chuckled.

"Well don't." Hyuuga replied. "Because if you pull another stunt like today then I won't be rewarding you for it." There was little conviction behind his words but the message was still clear.

I shrugged, trailing a hand down Kiyoshi's chest. With that match out of the way we could properly start thinking about the Winter Cup, we also had to start thinking about our future together. There was only so much time left to prepare before all our lives changed forever.


	7. Stirring the pot

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So many things...okay so I had a tonne of ideas I wanted to get into this chapter but it didn't quite all fit so there'll be some things touched on in this chapter that'll come up later in more detail.
> 
> Also I rapidly edited this one so there may be some strangely worded sentences and spellings.

 

It occurred to me that I'd have to get used to waiting rooms as time went on, it also occurred to me that Hyuuga didn't exactly provide much help in situations that needed courage. Kiyoshi had decided that it would be best if he didn't accompany us, mainly because he was covered in bruises and my doctor would probably freak out to say the least.

"How are you feeling?" Hyuuga asked, taking my hand in his, probably trying to keep his mind off all the worst case scenarios.

"I'm okay, I don't feel off or anything...I mean I know it looked ugly."

"Yeah, you went out cold." He murmured. "We don't even know where he hit you--"

"Okay, yeah..." I cut him off, not really wanting to completely relive the experience. Truthfully I was worried, I was worried that something had happened despite Riko's immediate assessment showing no obvious signs of distress, I kept thinking about all the possible side effects of me being unconscious for all that time,

My doctor called us in, he seemed pleased to see me despite the circumstances. We explained to him about the practice matches leading up to the incident and how everything was fine until Hanamiya got involved, he nodded and scribbled some notes down before asking me to lie down on the bed. At first I was a little apprehensive but he assured me he just wanted to give me an extensive check-up and that it was nothing to be frightened of. Hyuuga seemed weary of this and stuck close to me as I lifted my shirt up, there was the smallest hint of a bump but it was only noticeable if you _really_ looked for it.

The doctor's hands gently pressed against my lower abdomen, I watched anxiously as his face remained calm and gave no indication of any problems. After what seemed like an eternity, he smiled and nodded for me to sit up.

"Everything seems fine, did you get yourself checked out after the match?" He asked, moving to write down his thoughts in the folder I never read.

"Our couch sorted me out." I told him, accepting Hyuuga's arm around me and inhaling his comforting scent as my paranoia melted away slowly.

He nodded in approval, more notes being written. "So have you thought about how you want to proceed with the pregnancy?"

"Uh...what do you mean?" I asked.

"Well there's a lot you need to think about regarding the preparation for the birth, the actual birth itself, the after care and everything in between."

I buried my face in Hyuuga's shirt, he was right; it was a lot.

"Okay we can start simple." He chuckled slightly, detecting my unease. "So there's three of you correct?"

"Yeah." Hyuuga answered for me, rubbing my arm reassuringly. "We're actually all living in the same place now."

"Good to hear, so do you have another omega living with you?"

The only one who would count would be Kuroko but he didn't technically live there, Kagami hadn't presented yet but there was almost no doubt about how he was an alpha.

"Somewhat, one of our friends visits regularly." Hyuuga replied. I decided to let him answer most of the domestic questions and I'd just keep quiet, feeling drained from all the paranoia.

There were a lot more back and forth questions between them, relating mainly to our home set up and how much basketball I was playing, a few were more directed at my personal preferences to how many people I wanted to know about this, what kind of birth I'd want - even though I hadn't even thought past the Winter cup - and my family's medical history.

I really felt tired after all of it. I didn't fully realise we were home until I found myself being guided to bed and Hyuuga  was pressing light kisses to my cheek as he wrapped me up in a blanket. Kiyoshi was around but the two of them stepped outside the room to discuss whatever the doctor had said, I dug my phone out of my pocket and decided to text my mom to get her up to speed on everything, the text prompted a phone call which I fell asleep partway through.

My phone buzzed violently, waking me up and slightly startling me.

"Eh?" I mumbled.

"Oh Izuki, did I wake you up?" Takao's cheery voice greeted me.

"Kinda...I didn't even realise I was asleep." I sighed, smiling as the first year chuckled. He went on to ramble about how Shuutoku won their match so they were in the Winter cup too, that he saw Hanamiya with the Imayoshi after Seirin's match and how he 'wouldn't wish that sight on anyone', and Midorima's heat was exhausting him but he wasn't about to complain about the attention - I simply laughed and told him to be careful or else he'd end up...well like me.

"Yeah well you're gonna be a great parent! Not to mention you have two alphas who'd pretty much kill a man to make sure you're safe." He snorted. "Midorima would probably hand them the baseball bat and promise to hide my body for them."

"Is he really that bad?"

"No! Well, his alpha state is but that's also because he's a miracle, they're all like it apparently."

"Sounds fishy to me Takao."

"Don't worry about it." I could hear his smile in his voice. "Shin-chan and I are good. You just look out for yourself, ooh and did you get my text?"

I rolled my eyes and chuckled. "About you being a godfather? Well I haven't decided on that kind of stuff yet."

He spent a few minutes trying to convince me how he'd be perfect for the role, I smiled and found myself drifting again as Takao rambled on. He seemed to get the idea that I was exhausted, he congratulated me on our victory again and told me to get some rest.

As soon as I ended the call I tossed my phone off the bed, it clattered to the floor but I didn't really care. I just felt so tired and tense still. There were murmurs from the main room of the apartment but none that really prompted me to leave my bed, I rolled onto my stomach and pulled the pillow close to me, inhaling the mixed scent of both Kiyoshi and Hyuuga and feeling a little more relaxed as I drifted off again.

I woke up in darkness, quickly realising that it was some ungodly hour of the morning as both Kiyoshi and Hyuuga were in bed with me. I must've slept right through dinner and they must've thought that I needed the rest, however this meant my stomach was complaining about the lack of food. I eased myself out of Kiyoshi's hold and padded into the main room, it was slightly chilly but I was more focused on finding food.

It was just my luck that Kagami was pretty much out of food.

As I ran a hand through my hair I sighed heavily, why did I have to fall asleep for so long? Why didn't they wake me up to eat? Why didn't they set aside food for me? The questions ran through my mind as I flopped onto the couch and tried to work out how long it would be before someone woke up.

"Shun?" A groggy voice murmured after a while, I didn't even hear the door open and jumped a mile.

"Oh, hey." I breathed, regarding Kagami's sleepy form in the doorway. "D-Did I wake you?"

He shook his head. "I was just going to the bathroom when I heard you clattering around. Is everything okay?"

My stomach growled in protest, I offered a weak smile before replying. "I  missed dinner so...yeah...I'm starving."

For a moment I thought he was just going to go back to bed, but he gave me a half-smile and wondered into the kitchen area, seeming to already know what he was looking for. He presented me with a bowl of cereal and sat next to me on the couch with his own.

"Sometimes I find Tetsuya eating cereal at three in the morning." He told me as I tried to contain how hungry I really was. "So we sit here and talk about the meaning of life and shit like that for an hour or two and sometimes fall asleep when the sun rises."

"Sounds very poetic." I mumbled around the spoon.  "So are you two..together?"

"Yeah. I suppose it's kind of obvious isn't it?" He shook his head and stared into the bowl, avoiding giving me anymore details on his relationship with the other first year. "Can I ask you something?"

"Go for it."

"...Do you think I'm an alpha?"

I regarded him for a moment, if the theory of certain traits being the influence on whether someone's an alpha or not was true, then by all accounts it would be no surprise to anyone if Kagami did present as an alpha. However, there were anomalies to the theory - Kise was a miracle but he was an omega according to Kuroko - so there was always the chance that our own ace could end up as an omega too.

"Well, we haven't really thought about it much to be honest." I replied, setting the bowl down on the coffee table. "You certainly share similar traits to Junpei and the miracles who are alphas but everyone knows that there's a chance you won't be."

"I'm just worried that I'll hurt Tetsu when I...if I'm an alpha. I-I know it's happened before."

"What's happened?" I asked, confused. "Are you referring to my situation?"

His eyes widened. "No! No I'm referring to the incident in middle school between him and Aomine."

This was the first I'd heard of it, I must've looked confused as he shook his head. I decided not to ask, whatever happened in Kuroko's past wasn't really my business however it did raise a few questions. Kagami cleared away the bowls and said he was going back to bed and that I should too, I nodded and told him I'd see him later. Once I was alone I started thinking about what Kuroko had said about Aomine being the first to present; _'He became rather bullish around us'_ what did that really mean? When _did_ Kuroko present? Was it at the same time or after? Was Aomine the one who he spent his first heat with? So many questions.

With my stomach now satisfied, I made my way back to the warmth of my lovers, easing myself between them and being pulled closer to Kiyoshi within a few moments of returning.

 

\---

 

"Shun..." A soft voice called, warm breath on my cheek awakened me further to find Kiyoshi smiling at me. I yawned and blinked a few times as I woke up properly, he chuckled slightly and ran a hand through my hair, cradling my face in his hand.

"...what time is it?" I mumbled.

"Nearly ten. We're meeting up with the team today remember? Riko's got plans to help us relax a little before the hard work begins."

I nodded, vaguely remembering the conversation taking place. When Kiyoshi said that Riko had plans, I somewhat envisioned that it meant a bizarre training schedule but when we met up with the rest of the team I was told a much different story.

"Hot springs?" Koganei repeated as we all met at the train station. "Are you serious coach? We're actually going to _relax_?"

"You make it seem like I don't let you relax!" Riko pouted, folding her arms across her chest. "Geez, you guys know how to make me feel bad."

"N-Not like that coach honest!" Tsuchida hurriedly tried to salvage our friend's feelings. "What Koga meant was--"

"I'm kidding you knuckleheads." Riko laughed. "I know I'm hard on you but it's because I want you to win, besides, I think you've earned this day."

A chorus of relieved laughter rang around the group as we got on the train, the first years were in high spirits and I felt happy to be out of the apartment with my friends. Koganei excitedly babbled on about a new yo-yo trick he had perfected and was trying to show us when the train jolted to a stop and he got half his hand caught in the string, much to Mitobe's amusement. I ended up walking with Furihata once we got out of the station, he had been a little more skittish than usual the past few practices and I felt like something was bugging him.

"Hm? N-No nothing's up senpai, honest." He replied when I asked him, tugging on his jacket sleeves. "I'm just excited for the Winter cup that's all!"

I raised an eyebrow, as far as I could tell he hadn't presented yet but he was being very secretive about anything in his private life. We had all gotten used to hearing him and the other first years talk about how they wanted to start dating as soon as they met someone special enough, it had been strangely quiet for a while though and it was a little puzzling.

"You sure?" I asked. "Come on Furi, you know I won't say anything."

"I appreciate it but I'm fine senpai, honestly." He smiled.

With the conversation effectively dead, I shrugged and listened to Kagami trying to explain what the American spas  were like to Kiyoshi. When we got closer Riko led us to the entrance of the springs, briefly pulling me aside before we reached the reception desk.

"Hey so, if you're feeling uncomfortable about using the springs with everyone then I can get you guys a private one, just the three of you? I really want you all to benefit from this place so if that'll make you feel more at ease then--"

"It's okay." I smiled. "I-I think I'll be okay. It's just our team right?"

She didn't seem to accept that. "Shun, I really think you should go for it. I mean, there'll be other times for you to bond with the team so just agree with me this once yeah?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Riko, is there another reason that you don't want me in the main spring?"

Hyuuga seemed to pick that moment to interrupt our conversation, Riko quickly explained that she could get the three of us a private bath so I didn't have to feel uncomfortable. Of course, Hyuuga agreed that it was a good idea and I effectively just went along with it to avoid an argument. It wasn't that I didn't want to take advantage of it, it was more that there was clearly more than one reason that Riko wanted _me_ away from the main baths.

Although I was actually feeling slightly apprehensive about getting naked. I hadn't done so in front of anyone since my heat and as my body was changing every day I couldn't help but feel more and more conscious of it's impurities, however small they were.

The rest of the team were a little put out about it but as Riko said, there would be other chances for us to all hang out so they just shrugged and agreed that they'd just get on with it and make use of the day. Kiyoshi smiled and took my hand in his as Hyuuga finalised the details with the receptionist and the rest of the team left. It was obvious that he had picked up on my sudden reluctance and was trying to ease my worries, rubbing his thumb over my knuckles and pressing a light kiss to my temple. I gazed up at his kind eyes, squeezing his hand with mine as Hyuuga cleared his throat loudly.

"This way." He gestured down the same corridor that our team had disappeared down a few minutes ago. I felt my pulse increase as  we walked past a series of doors, one of which being the general baths - we could hear Koganei and Kagami loud and clear - and stopping at one in particular.

The changing room wasn't that much different to our locker room in regards to what it contained, there were several small shelves for us to put our belongings, a selection of folded towels in different sizes, a small basket of lotions and oils and another with a variety of brushes.

Hyuuga wasted no time in locking the door and stripping off his shirt, Kiyoshi followed suit but kept a calm gaze on me as my hands shook, I didn't realise I was so worked up about it until I found my captain taking my hands in his.

"Are you okay with this?" He murmured. "You seem a little off."

I swallowed, my throat dry. "I'm a little...you haven't seen me since my heat." I told them both. "A-And I know I've changed and I just don't want you to be disappoi--"

He let go off my hands and moved them to my waist, chuckling slightly as he rested his forehead against mine. "Shun, we could never be disappointed with you. You're always going to be perfect to us."

"You don't have to though if you don't want to." Kiyoshi added. "We won't force you."

I shook my head. "I want to, I just don't want...I don't feel..." I couldn't explain to them how I felt like my body wasn't really mine, not with all the changes going on. Everything I had known since my early teenage years was changing as this baby grew and this was just the beginning of it all, I'd have to get used to this but it wasn't going to be easy.

The two of them seemed to come to a non-verbal agreement as Hyuuga gently coaxed me out of my shirt, I quickly covered my chest with my arms which gained a puzzled look from him but Kiyoshi seemed to understand immediately.

"It's okay Shun." He hummed in my ear, pressing a kiss to the back of my neck. "We won't stare if you don't want us to."

"I don't like them." I mumbled. "They feel weird."

Hyuuga grasped the gravity of the situation and nodded, gently taking my hand and coercing me to relax enough for him to pull both my arms away. He stayed true to Kiyoshi word, he didn't stare at my chest which was starting to mimic that of a middle-school girl, instead he leaned forward and kissed my neck, hand tenderly trailing from my cheek down the centre of my torso.

"You still look perfect to us." Kiyoshi whispered.

After a while of them assuring me that my body was only behaving naturally to my situation, they led me outside, we could hear the commotion from the others even this far away, if anything it made me feel slightly more at ease. Kiyoshi got in the small pool first, I marvelled at how quickly the bruises on his torso were healing and how toned his back was as he sighed in content at the water temperature.

"It's great." He smiled at me, I was still in my boxers with Hyuuga's arm around my waist. I smiled back and nodded, looking at my captain as I slowly ridded myself of the last piece of clothing and stepped into the warm water. I could sense that they were both watching me but I didn't mind too much, even with how self-conscious I felt I just had to remind myself that they both loved me and that I was carrying our child - there were much more important things to think about than how my chest was developing.

I was drawn into Kiyoshi's hold as I sat down, he wrapped an arm around me protectively and nuzzled my neck. Hyuuga smiled at the two of us as he slouched down in the water. In a way it was the most peaceful time we'd had together since my heat, it was certainly the first where I felt most comfortable even if I was still partly covering my chest.

"You need to loosen up a bit." Kiyoshi hummed, his free hand tilting my face towards his. I parted my lips and let him kiss me deeply, a small gasp passing between us as the water around us shifted slightly and Hyuuga's lips pressed to the back of my neck.

I felt my captain's arms wrap around me as Kiyoshi slowly released his hold on me, I let Hyuuga's hands cautiously travel up my torso, my lips were still pressed to Kiyoshi's as fingers tenderly toyed with my nipples, I gasped loudly and broke away from the kiss as the foreign sensation startled me.

"I'm sorry. " Hyuuga whispered, his hands stroking my stomach under the water's surface. "I should've asked."

"N-No it's okay." I babbled, face no doubt flustered. "It was...you just startled me."

He chuckled breathlessly. "Still, I should've asked."

I shrugged, finding his hands and bringing them back to my chest, whilst his actions _had_ startled me they were far from unpleasant. He made an small noise of interest as I encouraged him to continue where he had left off, if anything maybe this would help me get used to them. Kiyoshi gently held me as he watched Hyuuga's fingers and how I leaned back against the other's chest, slowly beginning to get used to how his calloused fingers would delicately roll over the sensitive peaks and send small sparks through my body. I started to make small gasps and moans as he got more into it.

"Enjoying the show Teppei?" He hummed, glancing up at Kiyoshi and raising his eyebrows as he kissed my neck. "Feel free to join in."

One of Hyuuga's hands left my chest, I expected Kiyoshi's hand to replace it but he had other plans. His lips ghosted over my neck, lightly pressing kisses as he travelled down my collarbone. I watched him as he swiped his tongue over my nipple, gently closing his lips around it and repeating the same action, Hyuuga's fingers still toying with the other as my small moans began to get louder.

"Shhh..." Hyuuga breathed, slowly pulling his hand away. "The other's might hear us..."

"But...but..." I whimpered, getting cut off by Kiyoshi's lips against mine as he pushed me further into Hyuuga's hold.

"How about we actually relax yeah?" The captain remarked, as Kiyoshi pulled away and nodded, he gestured to the basket of oils and lotions that were just inside the door. "Go get those and we'll give Shun here a much deserved massage."

"Can't argue with that." Kiyoshi murmured.

I wasn't about to either.

 

\---

 

After what seemed like hours of us relaxing, I actually began to feel more comfortable in my body again. The two of them had spent ages rubbing scented oils into my skin and caressing my body with kisses and slow gentle movements. I was honestly in a state of peace as I returned the favour to Kiyoshi, massaging his bruises with careful fingers and pressing feather-light kisses to each mark. Hyuuga had already gotten out and was drying himself off as Kiyoshi stretched and sighed heavily in content. I smiled as he drew me into a tight hug and murmured how much he loved me.

"Come on, the others will be waiting for us at this rate." Hyuuga remarked, already dressed. "Apparently we're going to Maji burger so we better not keep Kagami waiting."

We both laughed and proceeded to get out, Hyuuga wrapped a towel around me and kissed my cheek. I quickly got dressed and took Hyuuga's hand as we left the room. The others were waiting just outside the main door but there seemed to be something off about them. Firstly, Kuroko and Kagami weren't present, secondly Koganei and Tsuchida seemed paranoid.

"What's going on? Where's Kagami and Kuroko?" Hyuuga asked.

"Uh, about that." Koganei replied. "So it turns out that Touou likes coming here and...they ran into Aomine."

"What?"

I tuned out of the conversation, catching the scent of someone else. As I glanced over my shoulder I saw the rival captain leaning against the wall. Our eyes met and I instinctively stepped closer to Hyuuga who followed my gaze, he didn't seem impressed at Imayoshi's presence.

"Oh, it's you." He remarked, stepping between me and the other alpha. The tension in the air grew as Imayoshi smirked and nodded towards me.

"Word on the street is that Hanamiya gave you guys a beating."

"What's it to you?"

"I hope he didn't injure you too much." Imayoshi looked straight past Hyuuga and tilted his head at me slightly. "Especially considering your recent development."

I swallowed, stepping back further and finding Kagami behind me, irritation rolling off him as he analysed the situation. The rest of the team were tense as our captain glared at the third year, taking it as a personal attack.

"And you care, why?"

"Just curious."

"Curious my ass." Kagami snapped, stepping around me and in front of Hyuuga. "Just fuck off yeah?"

Imayoshi laughed. "Well, it's nice to know your ace is as rude as mine. Although Aomine is a miracle so we let it slide, and he actually wins matches convincingly."

"Say _what_?" Kagami was getting more fired up and I was honestly beginning to feel slightly sick as Imayoshi's presence started to affect the rest of us. "You better think twice before you continue letting your mouth run."

Riko's arrival somewhat defused the situation, although it was more the other person accompanying her that seemed to have an effect.

"Imayoshi-san! I thought I told you to keep Dai-chan with you!"

Riko didn't look impressed as Momoi started lecturing Imayoshi about Aomine's tendency to wander if he wasn't watched. Kagami was caught between laughing at the rival captain getting yelled at and cowering from the slap he was in danger of receiving.

I felt Kiyoshi's hand slipping into my grasp as Riko told us to start walking to the train station ahead of her, a quick glance behind us showed not only Imayoshi appearing to storm off in search of his ace but also Riko receiving a piece of paper from the other manager. Of course I was curious but Hyuuga was still very tense and he was practically dragging Kagami towards the station, I decided I'd keep my questions to myself as we silently walked.

 


	8. Cravings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...4,500 words...yeah. I ended up in the zone again (whoops?)
> 
> Anyway, I just wanna say thank you so much to all of you for leaving kudos, I appreciate it so much! Obviously this fic is very much a 'work in progress' with me pretty much sitting down every other day to plan and write each chapter, so it's very encouraging to see that so many people like what I'm writing!

"You're craving _what_?" Kagami repeated, it was half six in the morning and I was adamant that the only thing I wanted to eat was oranges.

Kiyoshi chuckled and ruffled my hair. "Oranges. _Just_ oranges?"

I brushed his hand away, slightly irritated. "Look, if you haven't got any then we can get some on the way to school--"

"Hell no, you're not leaving until you've eaten something." Kagami replied, letting the cupboard door slam shut. "At least have some toast Shun."

"I second that." Kiyoshi stated. "You need to eat."

"I _will_ eat." I snapped.

It was a moot point, I hadn't gotten much sleep because I kept having weird dreams and I'd been awake since four because of it. Now I was craving certain fruits and Kagami didn't seem to understand why it was so important. My saving grace came in form of Kuroko, who I had inadvertently texted instead of Takao, arriving with a bag from the local market.

"Oranges and limes?" He clarified as he handed it to me. "Also don't feel bad about waking me up, I was going to drop by anyway." He smiled slightly.

I nodded and pulled him into a hug, he seemed a little confused but cautiously gave my back a light tap. As Kiyoshi peeled an orange for me, Kagami made a remark about omegas being weird and got a harsh nudge in the ribs from Kuroko in response, along with a reminder that he hadn't presented yet so he could be one for all he knew. Hyuuga merely rolled his eyes as he walked in to find Kiyoshi feeding me segments of orange and lime as I sat on the kitchen counter. Once they were both satisfied that I had eaten enough, we all got ready for the day's classes and the no doubt stressful practice.

"So will we need more oranges?" Kagami asked jokingly as we began walking to school, the brisk November wind made me shiver even in my jacket and I could practically feel Hyuuga and Kiyoshi's concern rolling off them.

"Yes." I replied immediately. "And cherries."

"Cherries too?!"

"Yes!"

Kiyoshi laughed as Kagami sighed loudly. The rest of the walk went without much more being said, as we got into the school building I felt a shiver run down my spine. Something felt off. Hyuuga gave me a puzzled look as I froze at the shoe lockers. I gave him a weak smile and continued to swap my shoes for slippers, we made our way up to our classroom and were accosted by Riko within seconds of entering the room.

"Shun I got something for you." She remarked, offering a small paper bag to me. "I advise you open it in private."

I raised an eyebrow and took a peek inside, when I caught sight of the material I quickly shoved it into my school bag, hoping to hell that no-one saw how red my face was. Although that was another thing entirely; a lot of our classmates had figured out that something about me was slightly different. Some of the more arrogant alphas had approached me on several occasions and gotten a little too close for comfort - that was until Kiyoshi took to wrapping an arm around me protectively whenever anyone ever came close.

Likewise, I had been at the centre of a lot of omega and beta attention. They were a bit intimidated at first, but after Koganei paid me a visit one day and showed that my two alphas were pretty much harmless, I started getting looked after by some of them when Hyuuga and Kiyoshi weren't around. It made me feel a little less apprehensive.

"What was it?" Hyuuga asked as I sat down at my desk.

"Uh...you'll find out later." I told him. "...much later."

He seemed to buy it, telling me that he'd be back shortly before leaving me there. I sighed heavily and idly started checking my phone, Takao was in high spirits for one reason or another - I think it was something to do with Midorima's heat - and I was getting messages from my sister asking why I hadn't been home in a while. The lack of sleep was catching up with me already, I didn't even realise that I was drifting until one of my classmates poked my shoulder.

"Huh?" I asked, snapping my head up and staring at the girl, I vaguely remembered that she was a beta and was so far one of the only ones brave enough to approach me alone. "Oh sorry, I must've..."

"It's okay." She smiled. "I noticed you seem a bit out of it so I bought you this." She handed me a can of cold coffee from one of the vending machines. "Look after yourself Izuki or I'll be tempted to tell your mates about this."

I chuckled and nodded in thanks. "I have a feeling they already know." I gestured to Kiyoshi who was in an animated conversation with Riko, he was probably trying to get her to let me skip practice due to my lack of sleep. As Hyuuga returned to me, our classmate smiled and left us to it, he leaned against his desk which was behind mine and reached out to stroke my cheek. I tilted my head into his hold and smiled up at him, he returned the smile and I could practically hear the onlookers sighing at us.

It was certainly no secret that there was something going on.

 

\---

 

Furihata found me halfway through lunchtime, the second years had decided to eat lunch in our homeroom so we were slightly puzzled by our kouhai's presence, especially when he asked to speak with me in private.

"It's probably nothing but I don't know who else to ask." He babbled as I closed the door behind me and looked at him. He was _very_ jumpy today and I could tell practice would be fun if he was like this.

"Okay..." I nodded. "What's up?"

"When you...uh found out you were an omega, were there any signs beforehand? Like hints that you were about to go into heat?"

I thought about it, the days leading up to that incident were a little fuzzy - much like the event inside the locker room itself - but I couldn't recall any signs per say. Not until the heat started anyway and by that point it would be obvious to just about anyone.

"Well you're a first year still so I don't think--well it would be uncommon for you to be actually going through it." I told him. "But I suppose the classic signs are feeling more paranoid, lack of attention span, feeling tired...why?"

He swallowed and glanced around him briefly. "I-I don't know, I just feel strange."

I raised an eyebrow. "Have you been to the nurse? She's probably better at spotting the signs than me--"

"No! No I don't want to go...I'm okay. You're right, I'm still a first year and only people like the miracles go through their heats this early. Thanks senpai!"

With that, he was gone. I shook my head slightly and returned to the others, they asked what it was all about but I declined to tell them, I had my suspicions that Furihata had worked himself up over a little paranoia and saw no reason to worry them.

"By the way," Kiyoshi murmured. "you're coming back to my house today."

"What? Why?" I asked a little too quickly.

"To meet my grandparents." He smiled. "They've been wanting to meet you for a while so I figured we could give Kagami a break for the evening."

"You get to meet Grand-mama Kiyoshi!" Koganei remarked. "I'm jealous, she makes nice food...although Mitobe's cooking is great too!" He gestured to the other who smiled.

I forced a smile, I was already tired and we still had practice to go, I just wanted to go home and sleep. The rest of the lessons went slowly, I tried not to let on that I was borderline sleep-walking to the gym but Riko saw right through me in a matter of seconds.

"How much did you sleep last night?" She asked as everyone else warmed up.

"Five hours maybe?" I replied. "And before you say it; I know I need to look after myself. I just had a bad night."

She sighed and told me to take it easy, deciding not to press the matter, she was more concerned with Kagami's absence as apparently there was an important announcement that he needed to be around for. I shrugged and started practising my shots, happy that my exhaustion didn't seem to be effecting my skills. We were about to set up a practice match when Kagami burst in, Riko was halfway through yelling at him when she paused and gave him a concerned look.

"...Kagami go home." She stated, folding her arms across her chest.

"I just got here!" He exclaimed, sweat was clinging to his forehead as he stripped off his school shirt there and then. "I'm here to practice."

"No." Riko snapped. "Go home Kagami."

I was confused, I hadn't seen anything like this before. Koganei appeared at my side and tugged on my arm, I shot him a puzzled look but I found myself being coaxed further away from our ace. Hyuuga and Kiyoshi exchanged a glance, even Mitobe seemed a little on edge at Kagami's behaviour. It was when Kuroko approached Kagami and the two of them seemed to come to an agreement in hushed tones that I caught on.

Kagami was going through his first heat and Riko wanted him nowhere near the team whilst it was happening. After a few more exchanges between the light and shadow, Kuroko told Riko he'd take Kagami home and check in later. Any chance of me being able to go home and sleep was diminished in a second.

Kiyoshi pressed a kiss to the top of my head as the two first years left. "We can crash at my house if he's not back to normal by tonight."

"Great..." I sighed as practice returned to normal for the rest of the hour, I tried to shrug off how tired I felt as the ball bounced off to the side.

"Alright, fall in." Riko ordered with a blast of her whistle. "I need to tell you guys some stuff and then you can get out of here." We all gathered around wondering what was on the clipboard that she held, as far as her facial expression read; it wasn't exactly good news.

"What is it?" Hyuuga asked, peering over her shoulder and getting a glare in response.

"Okay, so I got hold of the match order for the Winter cup." She stated. "I'm not sugar-coating this, our first match is against Touou."

"Touou?!" A chorus repeated along with various sighs and swearing.

"So that's why that bastard seemed so full of himself--" Hyuuga muttered before getting hit in the head with Riko's clipboard.

"Don't sink to his level." She chided. "Anyway, we have just over a week to prepare. I was intending to get Kagami on a specialist training schedule but I guess that'll have to wait until his heat's over...same with Kuroko. The point is, we're up against an old rival, we're also up against Aomine so I want you all to practice hard but don't burn yourselves out. Also the opening ceremony will take place before our match so make sure you get enough sleep but I'll cover all that in practice tomorrow. Hit the showers guys, I'll see you around."

 

\---

 

Kiyoshi didn't live that far away from my parent's home, in a way it was a relief but I was still nervous. Hyuuga decided to go back to his parent's house and finally come clean about all of this, I was more than a little annoyed when I found out he hadn't told his parents yet but I couldn't exactly fault him, having met his parents and knew that they weren't the most open-minded people. We both wished him good luck and told him to call if he needed help, otherwise it was just going to be Kiyoshi and I for the evening.

"So when did you actually go through your first heat? I don't remember you being like that in school." I asked him as we walked down the street hand in hand.

He chuckled and shook his head. "Summer vacation, it was just after our training camp in the mountains and Junpei was hanging out at my house..."

"Wait you both went into heat together?"

"No, I dunno when he presented but I knew he was already comfortable in the role of alpha. I remember the look on his face when mine started--" He laughed, pausing for a moment to try and mimic the disturbed expression. "--and well he was concerned to say the least."

I snorted. "So did he leave you to it or did he help you?" I raised an eyebrow. "Did he give you a _hand_ with your problem?"

Kiyoshi groaned at my attempt at a pun. "He was more interested in whether I was going to try it on with him."

"Now there's something I'd want to see." I breathed, not really wanting him to hear. He laughed and shook his head again.

"I'll mention it to him and see how red his face gets."

We were both in fits of giggles as we arrived at his family home. It was a small but charming place off one of the side streets, the door opened before we even got up the small pathway and Kiyoshi was drawn into a bear hug by his grandfather. I hung back, shy and nervous about making a good first impression, despite Kiyoshi being loved by my family I had never met his before.

"And you must be Izuki." The kind voice spoke, I smiled and nodded, trying to work out how formal I should be.

Kiyoshi took my hand and led me inside, taking off our shoes before we ended up in the small lounge. He gestured to the kotatsu in the middle of the room and told me he'd be back in a second so I should make myself comfortable. I smiled and sat down on one of the cushions before slipping my legs under the blanket and into the heated space beneath the table. Whilst I waited for him to return I started texting Hyuuga, freaking out slightly at the whole situation, he replied with some short words of encouragement but he confessed that he didn't really know what to say.

I rolled my eyes somewhat before placing my phone on the table, I heard Kiyoshi talking in another room with who I assumed was his grandfather given that it was the same voice form before. Eventually he returned, with a tray of cups and a floral tea pot in hand, and his grandfather following.

"So how are things with the basketball club?" He asked as Kiyoshi started pouring tea.

"Good, we're through to the Winter cup and we got told who our first opponents are." Kiyoshi smiled, putting a cup in front of me and then his grandfather. "Things are set to get interesting."

"And how are things with you?" He nodded to me, I knew exactly what he was getting at as I swallowed, the man had a gentle face, Kiyoshi definitely took after him in looks and temperament, and his kind smile made me feel a little more at ease.

"I-I'm good thanks." I murmured. "Things are up and down...but yeah."

Kiyoshi smiled and covered my hand with his, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"My wife will probably ask you all the questions, don't feel nervous. She's ecstatic about the whole thing, I'm sure she'll have more than her fair share of old wives cures for--"

"Alright." Kiyoshi put up a hand to stop him rambling any further, sensing my discomfort. "What's been going on around here anyway? I saw a load of boxes from the attic in the hallway."

I somewhat tuned out of the conversation as my tiredness took over, the tea had made me feel slightly sleepy and the warmth of the kotatsu wasn't helping me fight the fatigue. I didn't intend to end up slouched forward and resting my head on my arms, but as Kiyoshi gently stroked my head I let my eyes close, I stayed awake enough to listen to the conversation though.

"He's been tired all day." Kiyoshi murmured. "Our housemate's going through his first heat so that's also why I bought him here."

"Ah, makes sense. How's Junpei?"

"He's alright, he's at his parent's house now coming clean about this. He's taking it rather well though, I know he's been working hard to keep the team in order so he's got a lot to keep him busy."

"Is he still working in his father's shop? If either of you need some extra cash then I know some neighbours who'd pay you good money to run errands for them, and obviously your nanna and I are around to help when you need us to be."

Kiyoshi's fingers carded through my hair, I began to drift slightly as the conversation went on. At some point he actually moved to sit next to me and pulled me to rest in his hold instead of on the table, I rubbed my face in his shirt, inhaling his comforting scent as he held me.

"He's certainly got a glow about him."

"Yeah, he's hardly showing at the moment thankfully." Kiyoshi murmured. "He doesn't want to show until after the Winter cup."

"He's doing well though from what I can see. I can't imagine it being easy for him."

I snapped out of my doze, not sure of how long had passed since I drifted off, sitting up straight and rubbing my eyes, Kiyoshi gazed at me fondly as I stifled a yawn and smiled at him.

"Nice sleep?" He asked.

"Kinda, I was only resting my eyes." I told him. "I just feel so tired."

He pulled me back into a hug, cradling me in his strong arms with little effort. "It's okay love. We'll get you some food soon and then you can sleep properly."

I sat in his hold for a while, going back to drifting in and out of sleep as he continued to speak quietly with his grandfather. At some point his grandmother returned home from her day out, the sounds and smells of cooking food woke me up as Kiyoshi was scrolling through his messages on his phone. He assured me that we didn't have to move until dinner was ready, pressing a light kiss to my cheek as I sighed.

Apparently he had told his grandmother about my cravings as I was presented with a fruit salad made up of almost entirely citrus fruits, I smiled and thanked her before quickly beginning to eat. Kiyoshi smiled as I no doubt looked less than graceful shovelling segments of orange and lime into my mouth, my fatigue had left me hungry and my craving was finally satisfied. His grandmother started asking all sorts of questions about what my eating habits were like, how much sleep I was getting, whether I had gone to any antenatal classes yet. I managed to keep my answers short and polite, just to appease her but I really didn't feel up to playing twenty questions.

"It's been a long day for us so I was thinking we'd just head to bed now if that's okay." Kiyoshi sighed, collecting the plates up and making for the kitchen. I lazily sent a text to Kuroko asking how Kagami was doing, the reply was short but to the point;

_I was right._

So Kagami was definitely an alpha, it was no surprise but I was glad that we weren't in the apartment. Once Kiyoshi had cleaned up the dishes he led me to his room, it was neat and fairly standard for a high-school student, the main attraction was the bed that was larger than mine and looked extremely comfortable with its pale green sheets. He chuckled as I collapsed onto it without bothering to undress.

"So I called Junpei." He remarked, locking the door and moving to turn on the small bedside lamp. "He said he'll get back to the apartment later and drop by in the morning with a change of clothes for you."

"Did he say how it went with his parents?" I murmured, rolling over and looking up at him.

"No, he didn't sound upset though so I guess it's not too bad. They probably just need time." He smiled, gesturing to my school bag that had been bought in. "So what did Riko give you today?"

"Eh?"

"The bag?"

"Oh...that, aha." I nervously laughed, he must've seen the exchange but chosen not to say anything until now. "Uh, it's kinda stupid."

He sat on the edge of the bed and coaxed me to sit up, I bit my lip as he gazed at me with a gentle smile and took my hand in his. "I'm sure it's not stupid."

I exhaled heavily, squeezing his hand. "So you know at the hot springs, when I was really self-conscious about--" I gestured to my chest area and he nodded. "--well I told Riko about how they were growing and she went shopping for me."

"Ah, so have you tried any on yet?"

I shook my head. "I mean, she let me borrow a sports bra for the last few matches but this'll be the first time...god it's so stupid..." I breathed.

He smiled and rubbed my back with his other hand. "It's not stupid."

"I'm a seventeen year old boy and I'm gonna have to wear a bra Teppei. I don't see how any of it isn't stupid."

"When you put it like that of course it _sounds_ stupid. Think of it like this; you currently have a new life growing inside you and that baby is going to need nutrition from somewhere."

"Maybe I don't even want to breastfeed." I huffed.

He mimicked my sigh and hugged me a little tighter. "Cheer up babe, you don't need to decide yet."

"I will at some point though Teppei. The more I put off these things, the more I have to deal with later."

"True." He hummed. "Well Junpei and I will support you with whatever you choose."

I stared at the bag, I was no stranger to the concept of a bra, having grown up with Aya and having Riko for a friend the past two years. However this seemed far from what little comfort zone I had regarding them.

"...I suppose I should see what Riko picked out." I murmured.

"She would've been sensible about it."

With shaking hands, I leaned forward and eased the brand-less bag out from amongst my school supplies. Judging by the size, I reckoned she had bought at least three for me, before I even dug them out I found a note.

_Hey Shun. I went shopping with one of my friends over the weekend and we picked these out for you. Don't worry about paying me back! - Riko_

I thought little of it and handed it to Kiyoshi as my fingers closed around the material, I was dreading what it looked like, but as Kiyoshi had said, Riko had been sensible about it. At first I eyed the tag wearily, the words 'training bra' bore into my mind as I held it by the strap. I was seventeen and I was supposed to wear a bra designed for thirteen year old girls.

"You would've thought by now they'd have come up with something for the male omegas to wear." I uttered, Riko had picked out two different styles - two with under-wire and two without - and they were all light grey so they wouldn't show up too much under my uniform. I was thankful of course, it meant I didn't have to endure shopping for them or even worse; ask my mother or sister to buy me one.

"Life is unfair to the minorities." Kiyoshi hummed, picking one of them up and rubbing his thumb over the padded part. "So are you gonna try one on?"

I thought for a moment before nodding. He made a point to check his phone so that he wasn't staring as I stripped my shirt off, I appreciated his thoughts but at the same time I'd have to get used to it sooner or later.

"You can look if you want." I told him, fiddling with the clasp on one of the unwired bras. "I'm gonna need your help adjusting it anyway."

He smiled as I shrugged the undergarment on and turned away from him, his gentle fingers tugged on the two pieces that fitted together, he seemed to get the general idea as he latched them together and drew his hands back. The few times I had worn a sports bra during practice had prepared me for the tightness, although I could breathe a lot easier and still see my developing chest in this one.

I didn't turn back to face him at first, I just felt strange wearing this garment, it just didn't seem right at all with everything I had grown up knowing. I was caught slightly off guard by his hands coming around and gently resting on top of my chest, I leaned back in his hold, eyes fixed on how his hands covered the two small with little difficulty.

"You're beautiful." He whispered, kissing my neck. "With or without them."

I felt myself blush. "I-I guess..." I covered his hands with my own, still not quite sure about this development.

"We should get some rest, you were practically falling asleep at the table."

He unfastened the bra, I slipped it off before realising I didn't have a shirt to sleep in. Kiyoshi dug around in his closet before tossing a dark blue jersey in my direction, I gave it a puzzled look before noting the number four on the back.

"Wait, is this--"

"My jersey from Junior high. Yep." He smiled, shrugging his shirt off and pulling on a simple t-shirt. "It should fit you."

"You...I can't Teppei, this is your jersey from when you were captain."

"Just wear it Shun." He chuckled. "It's just gathering dust otherwise."

I bit my lip and pulled it on, it smelt of him and that was comforting to say the least. He smiled as he crawled behind me on the bed and wrapped an arm around me, I led next to him and let him pull the sheets up over us and then tug me closer to him. Before I fell asleep I demanded that we texted Hyuuga goodnight, adamant that he didn't go to bed without knowing we loved him.

"You can keep it if you want." Kiyoshi murmured, kissing my forehead as he switched the small bedside lamp off. "My jersey."

"Maybe I will Teppei." I breathed. "Maybe I will..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm pretty sure I've said this before, I'm always open to suggestions and head canons, I'm lucky enough to have a friend who can help me out when I get stuck but any idea thrown my way will get considered - although I don't make any promises that I'll definitely include them - so if you have an idea, or even if you just wanna let me know if I fucked up somewhere in the chapter (my word choice is horrendous sometimes) then I always try to reply to any comments I get.


	9. "You're a natural"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was weird to write...I don't know.  
> Also, expect updates to be quicker between now and Christmas!

Soft lips on the back of my neck stirred me from my slumber, weak daylight was filtering through the blinds but it was enough for me to work out it was morning. I mumbled something incoherent, pressing back into Kiyoshi's hold as his arm tightened around me.

"Morning love." He whispered. "Sleep all right?"

I hummed, not really wanting to get up, he nuzzled my neck in response. We led like that for a while, not saying anything and simply getting lost in our own thoughts, occasionally trading kisses and pressing closer together but I was content to fall back asleep.

His phone buzzed loudly, with a sigh he reached over me and peered at it before getting up and leaving the room. I pulled the blankets back over me and buried my face in the pillow, expecting to be able to get some more precious minutes of sleep.

"How is he?" Hyuuga spoke quietly as footsteps indicated they were both on their way to me.

"Tired, I'm not sure if it's the practice or the pregnancy." Kiyoshi replied. "How did it go with your family?"

Hyuuga sighed, the footsteps had stopped outside the door. "Well, they're not exactly over the moon about it, but my dad said he was impressed by how mature we were being about it..."

"That's good isn't it?"

"I guess, I don't know if they'll be as helpful as Shun's or yours though."

"Just give them some time, you never know."

Nothing else was said, I didn't really think much of it until the door opened and the hallway light flooded the room. Hyuuga sat on the edge of the bed and gently ran a hand through my hair, I smiled at him as his hand rested on the pillow next to me. He leaned down and kissed my cheek, I hummed in response, finally deciding to sit up. I got a raised eyebrow from him at the sight of me wearing Kiyoshi's old jersey which made me blush slightly.

"Feeling more with it today?" He murmured. "Cause Riko's not going to let you slack off."

I shrugged, my gaze flicking between them. "I guess."

Kiyoshi smiled, stating that he was going to get started on breakfast before kissing us both on the cheek and leaving us alone. I took this as a hint to get dressed, the bag Riko had given me was fresh in my mind as Hyuuga handed me the change of clothes that he had picked up that morning.

"So you're actually going to wear one?" He asked as I explained it all to him.

"I mean, I could just wear a sports bra but that'll probably do more harm than good...I guess I'll just have to get over it." I sighed, tugging Kiyoshi's jersey over my head and trying not to look at my chest as I fumbled with one of the annoying clasps.

"Let me help you." He murmured, standing up and taking it from me. He slipped the straps over my arms and tugged the bra into place, fingers brushing against the sensitive skin and causing my breathing to hitch slightly. Once it was on I swallowed, still feeling strange wearing it.

"Today's the first day I'm wearing one to school." I whispered, quickly shrugging on my normal shirt and trying to get it buttoned quickly so I didn't have to look at it for any longer than I had to, his hands on mine made me pause.

"It's okay babe." He told me, squeezing my hands. "You look stunning in it."

"That's not actually helping..." I lied, the redness in my cheeks betrayed me as his hands lingered at my waist.

He pulled me into a hug. "Don't worry so much, it'll be hidden by the rest of your uniform anyway."

It was barely comforting but he was right, after a few moments of breathing in his scent I pushed him away and got on with getting dressed.

 

\---

 

Practice was the first time we saw Kuroko since Kagami's heat, the ace himself was missing but Riko didn't seem phased. Kuroko smiled slightly and ducked his head as Hyuuga regarded him with a raised eyebrow, the first year didn't seem worse for wear with the exception of a small love-bite on his neck.

"He hasn't claimed you?" Koganei asked in a hushed tone as Riko lectured Kiyoshi about his taped up knee and the others started warming up.

"He's under no obligation to." Kuroko replied.

"But aren't you two together?" I murmured. "I mean if it was the other way around; he claimed you but you weren't together then that would be almost normal."

Kuroko shrugged. "That's between us I guess."

Koganei and I shared a puzzled look but dropped the subject, if Kuroko and Kagami had come to an arrangement then it was none of our business. We got on with the rest of Riko's strict training practice before she called me aside. She asked me if I had been back to my doctor since the match with Hanamiya, which I hadn't, and whether I had gone for my first scan or not.

"I mean, we already know I'm--" I started but her glare said it all really. "Okay I'll get it done before the match."

"You have a week and three days before then." She stated. "You can go now and book it in to make sure it's done."

I gave her a wide-eyed look. "But we're only halfway through practice."

"Call someone to escort you then. Hyuuga and Kiyoshi both need to stay here, as does everyone else." She told me, folding her arms across her chest.

She wasn't going to let me drop this. I could only think of one person who'd I'd be comfortable with being there - aside from my family who I didn't want to bother - and he was probably also in practice.

"Pick up the phone dammit." I cussed as I stood in the changing room, my chest felt tight as I considered having to make the trip alone.

" _Izuki-san?_ "

"Takao, thank god. Look I need a favour." I babbled. "Omega to omega."

He was definitely in practice, I could hear Miyaji and Ostobo complaining in the background and the undeniable sounds of basketballs being dribbled down the court.

" _Uh sure? What's up?_ "

"How quickly can you get to Seirin High?"

Takao arrived not too long after I hung up the phone, he was rather amused by the situation and I had managed to hide his arrival from my team. The last thing I needed was them getting annoyed at me hanging out with a rival point guard. I told him about how Riko had demanded that I go and get my scan booked in before the opening ceremony, he chuckled and told me it was nothing to worry about.

"So she kept both your alphas in practice? Wow, that's harsh. And they don't know I'm taking you?"

I shook my head as we walked out of the school gates, it's not that I wanted to lie to them, it was more that I didn't want them getting paranoid about me. Takao was harmless, it was his alpha who scared me slightly.

"How are you feeling anyway?" He smiled. "Haven't heard much from you since that last match."

"So-so. Not much has changed to be honest, although we found out we're facing Touou first at the Winter cup."

"Ahh Imayoshi?" He asked, noting how my tone changed. "Is he still being an ass about that how you two nearly--"

"Shut up." I sighed, playfully shoving him. "He can't do anything to me anyway. Not without signing his own death warrant."

Takao shrugged. "I wouldn't worry about it either way. Him and that prick Hanamiya seem to be close."

The rest of the journey was spent with him telling me about the latest gossip from his high school, not disclosing any secrets of his team's play but sharing many practice shenanigans nonetheless. I appreciated how he made me feel a little more at ease about walking around the city, I was getting used to receiving strange looks from passer-by’s who had clocked onto my situation, was it really that uncommon for a male omega to end up pregnant? Takao distracted me from most of them but there was still a small sense of discomfort about being stared at on the train.

My doctor didn't seem phased by Takao's presence, he merely raised an eyebrow at us before inviting us into his office. I told him about the recent developments in my body and what my diet was like, Takao had the good grace to look like he wasn't listening - opting to scroll through his phone instead - but I figured he was taking note anyway.

"So I guess you're here for the dating scan?"

"Well I'm here to book it in." I told him. "Neither of my alphas could get out of practice but--"

"We have time to do it now. I can't guarantee that we'll be able to fit you in before your next match. The sooner we do it the better Shun."

I exchanged a glance with Takao before fishing my phone out of my pocket. I knew neither of them would have their phones on them during practice so I opted to call Riko instead. She wasn't impressed that I was being so demanding but she gave in and said she'd send the two of them to me, even calling to both of them whilst I was still on the line.

Takao gave me a reassuring smile as I hung up. "Do you want me to go? I mean, they probably won't want me around you."

I shook my head. "Stay, I don't want to be alone."

My doctor decided that now would be the perfect time to ask about some more personal things. "So whilst we have time to spare, have you thought about how you want to give birth?"

The question caught me off guard, I hadn't thought that far ahead, I was still getting used to the idea of my body changing and had barely thought about what I was supposed to do after the Winter cup. I averted my gaze and stared at my hands in my lap.

"Uh, no. No I haven't." I replied eventually. "I've been avoiding it."

"Well you have a couple of options, the one I would personally recommend is the C-section..." He continued talking but I had tuned out, the whole process of giving birth was one I really hadn't thought about and I had a new sense of dread building inside me as my thoughts raced.

"And then of course you won't be able to have your alphas with you--"

"What?" I snapped out of my thoughts. "Why?"

He gave me a gentle smile. "It's hospital policy, because of their instincts to protect their omegas some alphas will lash out at the medical staff and that can cause complications. So unfortunately once the process starts they'll be escorted from the room."

"So I'll be alone?" I clarified, hands shaking. Takao reached across and took them in his to try and comfort me.

"No, you can choose any omega you wish to be what we call a birthing partner."

Any omega? My mind flicked through all my friends who I knew had presented, including the one sat next to me, and tried to work out which one I'd want by my side in the chaos.

"You don't have to decide now, just bear it in mind over the next few weeks."

I nodded, squeezing Takao's hands as I tried to calm my thoughts down. It wasn't long before Hyuuga and Kiyoshi arrived, Takao quickly stood up and back away from me as if he was in danger of being murdered for being near me. Then again with Hyuuga, anything was possible.

"What are you doing here?" My captain remarked, he seemed eerily calm but that could all change.

"Izuki called me and asked me to escort him here after your coach held you two back." Takao replied with a shrug. "I blew off my own practice to do so."

Kiyoshi stepped between them and smiled. "Well thank you." He gave Hyuuga a warning glance before turning back to Takao. "We appreciate you being here for him."

With a friendly pat on my shoulder, Takao made his getaway. Hyuuga and Kiyoshi listened to the doctor talking us all through the procedure that would be my first official scan, the first time we'd see our unborn child. I nodded in all the right places before I was told to lie on the bed and lift my shirt up whilst he got the equipment wheeled in.

"You nervous?" Hyuuga asked, he had probably noticed how quiet I was, truth was I was terrified if something abnormal came up.

"Kinda." I mumbled, running my hand over my stomach, the bump hadn't gotten any bigger thankfully and it was hopefully going to stay like that for a while longer.

"You'll be fine." Kiyoshi smiled, wrapping and arm around Hyuuga's shoulders and ruffling my hair with his free hand.

I swallowed and nodded, letting my hand be taken by Hyuuga as the doctor returned with a cart that had the ultrasound equipment on it. He explained everything he was doing as he started applying the cold gel to my stomach.

"So first I'll locate the baby, and you can all get a good look hopefully. Then we'll have a listen to its heartbeat." The doctor smiled, getting hold of the device that was hooked up to the screen. "Okay this might feel uncomfortable, we can stop at any time though."

I nodded, squeezing Hyuuga's hand as I felt the pressure on my stomach, all eyes were glued to the screen as the image shifted around. The doctor's calm expression gave me reassurance when at first nothing showed up.

"There it is." He stated, pressing a button on the control panel and zooming in on the image. My breathing hitched as I stared at the image, this whole situation felt a lot more real with the feed showing the form of a baby. Kiyoshi pressed a kiss to my temple as I tried to process it all.

"So how is it doing?" Hyuuga asked, squeezing my hand.

The doctor shifted the angle of the image as he took a longer look. "I believe you have a healthy baby here." He smiled at me before pressing a few more buttons, the sound of a frantic heartbeat came out of the speakers and startled me at first. "And that's a healthy heart rate. You're doing well Shun."

"I-I am?" I uttered, still wrapping my head around the fact that I was hearing this heartbeat.

"Yep. I've only dealt with a handful of male omegas going through this, but from what I've seen you're doing very well. You're a natural it seems." He smiled, giving us another look at our child before turning off the machine and giving me some paper towels to clean up the gel with. I actually let Kiyoshi do it as I was shaking slightly from the nerves and the shock.

We just leaving the hospital when Hyuuga got a call from Kuroko, apparently Kagami was safe to be around again so we could actually head home that night. I found myself instinctively placing a hand over my stomach as we walked, neither of them spoke much about it, focusing more on the plans for the next match as we made our way to Kagami's apartment. I didn't even have to walk through the door to catch his scent, it was strong and made me pause in partial fear.

"It's okay Shun." Kiyoshi murmured. "If Kuroko says he's safe to be around then you don't have to worry."

"It's not him I'm worried about." I replied. "My instincts are...I mean because of his scent I'm..." I wasn't sure how to explain the weird feeling, it wasn't as strong as my heat but there was a tightness in me. He gave me a puzzled look as Hyuuga paused in unlocking the door. They exchanged a glance before I found them very close to me.

"Is it, perhaps, making you feel flustered?" Hyuuga whispered, breath hot on my neck, his voice was low like it was during my heat and it wasn't helping my situation.

"I-Junpei..." I felt my legs shake slightly, he was right after all. I buried my face in his chest, inhaling deeply as he finished unlocking the door. "I can't though because of the--"

"Shhh." He breathed, wrapping an arm around me protectively as he led me into the apartment. I heard Kagami's voice as he started questioning where we'd been, he broke off - probably catching my scent - and then footsteps approached.

"No." Kiyoshi stated, putting himself between me and the ace. "No Taiga."

"I just want--"

"Taiga." Kuroko's voice silenced both of them. I didn't catch the ace's reaction but I gathered that he retreated back to his lover. Hyuuga wasted no time in pulling me into the spare room, I found myself led on the bed as Kiyoshi locked the door behind him.

"We should've expected that to happen Junpei." He sighed, crawling next to me on the bed.

"Yeah well I thought he'd have more sense."

"This is Taiga we're talking about--"

"Can you argue about this later?" I interrupted, getting their attention immediately. Hyuuga smiled slightly as he took off his glasses, slowly moving over me and pressing his lips to mine. I arched up into his touch, my thoughts discarded as I focused on one thing.

Kiyoshi's gentle fingers made short work of my uniform, I clumsily shrugged out of it, desperate not to lose contact with Hyuuga, he pulled away though as my shirt fell away. His eyes roved over my chest before he leaned down and nuzzled my neck, biting gently.

"You're so beautiful." He whispered.

"I concur." Kiyoshi murmured, fingers caressing my body.

I whimpered, carding my hands through Hyuuga's hair as the two of them took it in turns to kiss me, it eased the tightness in me a little but the alpha scents were still overwhelming me and simple kisses weren't enough. I caught hold of Kiyoshi's hand and directed it lower, he took the hint and gently palmed me through my school pants.

"Nng--" I breathed, tugging on Hyuuga's hair. "Please."

Hyuuga chuckled, kissing my collarbone. "You want us to make you feel good?"

"P-Please." I repeated, searching for his lips and moaning into his mouth when I found them.

Kiyoshi's hand got my pants undone and slipped under the waistband of my boxers, calloused fingers slowly stroking me as he nuzzled my neck. I felt Hyuuga's hand come down on my chest, toying with the fabric still covering the more sensitive areas, as I arched against his touch he reached around and managed to unfasten it with ease, pulling a surprised gasp from me. He pulled it away and kissed my chest, tongue flicking over one of my nipples, I moaned and panted as the two different sensations started easing the tightness, replacing it with a warmth that was only going to keep growing.

Hyuuga sloppily kissed his way down my torso, pausing briefly at my stomach and tenderly pressing his lips to the slight bump before glancing up at me. He tugged my pants away, my boxers quickly following, Kiyoshi's hand left my cock as Hyuuga kissed the tip and gradually took me in between his lips.

"How does it feel to have our captain between your legs?" Kiyoshi murmured in my ear, fingers ghosting over my chest and gently pinching my nipples. "To have us both pleasuring you like this?"

I gazed down at Hyuuga with lidded eyes, watching him take more of me in his mouth with little effort, I was lost for words as his gaze locked with mine and I saw the traces of desire in his eyes. He hummed around me, vibrations nearly causing me to lose myself there and then. Kiyoshi mouthed at my jawline, his hand moving from my chest to rest on Hyuuga's head in encouragement.

"Come on Junpei, I know you can take him deeper." Kiyoshi remarked, gaining a death glare from the other.

My cock brushed the back of his throat as he responded to Kiyoshi's comment, I let out a stammered gasp as his fingers began to gently toy with my balls and his pace quickened slightly. His tongue swirling around my cock, flicking over the head and lapping up the precum as Kiyoshi lightly bit at my neck, chuckling everytime I moaned or gasped at Hyuuga's actions.

"It feels good doesn't it?" Kiyoshi licked the shell of my ear and made me whimper. "He can use his mouth for more than barking orders."

Hyuuga made a noise of irritation, taking me roughly in his mouth and swallowing around me, my hips bucked up as I started feeling the prickling that was the start of my orgasm. He pushed my hips back down as he increased his pace, Kiyoshi's hand in his hair tightening and tugging him away, replacing Hyuuga's lips with his hand as he roughly stroked me. I wasn't even trying to be quiet, I fought to keep my eyes open as Kiyoshi's fingers bought me closer still.

"Come for me Shun." He breathed in my ear, swiping his thumb over the head of my cock.

"T-Teppei..." I whimpered as he roughly kissed me. My hips snapped upwards as I came, he stroked me through it as I panted into his mouth.

My mind was hazy afterwards, I heard him chuckle slightly which prompted me to open my eyes. My breathing hitched as I caught sight of Kiyoshi licking remains of my cum off my captain's face, making small noises of approval as he held Hyuuga's jaw in his strong grasp. A small whimper left my lips and caught their attention.

"Enjoying the show?" Hyuuga remarked with a small smirk. I swallowed as I watched my two alphas act so intimate, it made me wonder how many nights they had spent together before I went through my heat, those thoughts were willed away from my mind as Hyuuga pushed Kiyoshi away and went off in search of a towel.

I gathered my thoughts enough for me to at least pull some clothes on, Kiyoshi pulled me into his hold and held me tightly, kissing my shoulders tenderly. I relaxed in his arms, feeling tired but a _good_ kind of tired. When Hyuuga returned he rolled his eyes at us and found his glasses again.

"Just so you know." He remarked, lying on the bed with his head in my lap. "My plan was to swallow."

"Your plans always suck." I uttered, beaming at him as he glared up at me.

"I don't know if that was a pun or not, regardless, I'm offended." He pouted.

Kiyoshi chuckled. "Suck it up Junpei, you've had worse."

"Don't you start." The captain grumbled half-heartedly, nuzzling my thigh.


	10. Believe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this would've been posted like 6 hours ago if my laptop hadn't had blue-screened at 1am this morning and made me lose half of it. I spent my day watching my laptop scan itself for malware and cursing technology.
> 
> There is a reason that I'm updating more regularly - it's not just because I'm in the zone a lot - but I hope I'm not going too quickly, I know some of you are doing exams and stuff (good luck btw) so if anything, I suppose this'll be a little 'well done for surviving the exam period' gift!
> 
> Sidenote: things get a tiny bit dark in this chapter regarding exchanges between characters - much of it inspired by my own dealings with ex-boyfriends.

 

The week leading up to the opening ceremony was fairly normal, or as normal as our lives were anymore. Kagami had calmed down finally and he seemed to be back to his usual self as we practised one final time before the Winter cup officially began. Riko was satisfied with our progress and gave a small pep talk about how we had gotten this far because of our hard work and efforts as a team, the hours of practice and the losses we had suffered all paved the way to the next day's match, she ended it by saying that we should be proud of ourselves whatever the result.

The actual morning of the match day was, by all accounts, not too nerve-wracking. The team seemed more than content about it as we arrived at the sports complex, I spotted various teams I knew from their kit colours including Kaijou and Shuutoku, but we didn't approach any of them, there would be plenty of time to mingle with the friendlier members once the opening ceremony was done with.

"Coach I have to go." Kuroko piped up, phone in hand as the rest of the teams filtered out of the arena ahead of our match.

"What?!" Riko exclaimed. "I told you not to wander off--."

"I've been summoned." He replied, already making his way towards the exit. Riko stared dumbly after him for a few seconds before telling Furihata to follow him, Kagami managed to slip away undetected by her to also find out what our second ace was up to.

I turned my attention to the court, the tension in the air was mixed with the different scents of alphas, omegas and betas alike. Hyuuga was talking through some last minute plays with Riko, Kiyoshi was giving the freshmen a pep talk regarding facing off against such skilled opponents, I found Koganei stood next to me also surveying the court that we were going to be playing on.

"Nervous?" He asked.

"Who isn't?" I replied with a smile. "But it's like coach said, we got this far with the hours of hard work and the support of the team."

"Do you think we'll win?"

"I ball-lieve in our team." I simply stated with a smile.

He wrapped an arm around my shoulder and groaned slightly. "Now of all times?"

I laughed, Koganei was certainly a good person to have around in times like this. Riko called us all to gather around, she instantly clocked that we were three freshmen down and was about to march off and find them herself when Furihata stumbled back through the doors and made his way over to us.

"So?" Riko asked. "What happened?"

"Kagami nearly got stabbed."

"What?!" A chorus replied, Riko's expression turned from mild irritation to fury.

"Explain Furihata." She uttered.

"Rakuzan's captain--"

Our two aces came back before Furihata could explain any further, Kagami's face was graced with a small cut on his cheek, it wasn't bleeding but it had been judging by the smudged blood. Riko had to be held back by Tsuchida as Kuroko vaguely explained that Akashi had summoned the miracles for a meeting and that he had been less than impressed at Kagami and Furihata's presence.

"So he tried to stab you?" Hyuuga gestured to the mark. "What the hell? I knew the kid was a psy--"

"He did it as a test. He knew Kagami-kun would dodge it." Kuroko interrupted. "He's harmless."

It was something that we really didn't need to be debating as the minutes passed. Thankfully Kiyoshi's voice of reason rang out and reminded us that us facing Rakuzan any time soon would be a moot point if we didn't focus on our match against Touou. Riko seemed to recompose herself and led us to the changing room where we could gather our thoughts in a more controlled environment before the match, I asked if I could have a few minutes alone to gather myself before fully focusing on the task at hand and she accepted through gritted teeth.

I walked around the corridors of changing rooms and passed a lot of other teams who weren't playing today but were sticking around to watch other matches. I got a few respectful nods and more than enough raised eyebrows at the two marks on my neck that still wouldn't fade, a flash of blue up ahead made me pause momentarily but I quickly recognised the uniform and relaxed a little.

"It's been a while." The third year remarked, folding his arms across his chest as he leaned against the door frame. I wasn't as close to him as I was to Takao, but he was still a point guard and we all seemed to have this mutual respect for each other.

"Yeah, how's Kaijou doing?" I smiled, aware that the captain was sometimes more unpredictable than Hyuuga and sticking to the subject of basketball would be a better idea than changing it.

Kasamatsu sighed. "Kise is excited, Hayakawa keeps babbling on about rebounds, Nakamura and Kobori seem to be the most sane people on our team and your old friend continues to try and pick up both guys and girls with cheesy pick-up lines."

I stifled the laugh that wanted to escape. "So business as usual?"

"More than your team." He raised an eyebrow, showing very little emotion past indifference. "Your little situation has started becoming common knowledge. Don't ask how, I'd personally bet money on either Touou's point guard or his omega."

I felt the colour drain from my face, it didn't surprise me that Imayoshi would be the first on the list of suspects but it was still a shock that it had spread this quickly.

"Well how did you find out?" I asked.

"Kise. Don't ask how he found out, I don't want to know. The point is, you should be weary of that bastard during your match, I wouldn't want to be on the same court as him if I were you."

I nodded, figuring that I should get back to my team before Riko sent out a search party. I wished the captain good luck and hastily starting to walk back. I didn't expect to run into the person I did.

"Oh, it's you." I uttered as he smirked at me. "What are you doing here?"

"Can't I come and watch you get crushed?" He sneered.

"You're out of luck." I shrugged. "Besides, your alpha might need a shoulder to cry on after we take them to the cleaners."

Hanamiya didn't show any sign of believing me, I wasn't surprised - I hardly believed myself. He tilted his head which exposed the dark mark peeking out from under his jacket, the mark that had been there when we played against his team but it seemed darker now, as if it had been redefined with ink. Kasamatsu's remarks bounced around in my head as well as the ever-present thought that time was ticking. I stepped around him and continued on my way, glancing over my shoulder to find him watching me with an unsettling smile.

 

\---

 

"Will you settle down?" Riko hissed to Kagami as she threatened to hit him with the clipboard. "I know this is you first match since presenting but seriously?"

The ace sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, since coming into contact with the miracles he had been restless and kept flicking between fired up and a nervous wreck, Kuroko had told me that all but two of the miracles were alphas so it probably fuelled the adrenaline already in his system. I empathised with him though, just playing a normal match was hard when struggling with your instincts but the stakes were higher here _and_ he was our ace.

"So, don't let them underestimate us." Riko continued. "Start strong, make a statement."

The crowd's cheers broke off the rest of our instructions, Touou entered the arena looking as menacing as ever. The tension seemed to increase as I caught onto their presence. Kagami's gaze fixed on Aomine, the rival ace seemed to smirk in response before getting chided by Momoi. Something was off about all of this, regardless, we got in a huddle and Hyuuga did his job as captain to motivate us, echoing what Koganei and I had discussed earlier and Riko's speech from the last practice. I felt confident, this match wouldn't be easy but it felt great to focus on something other than the pregnancy.

"Let's go then." He finished. "Let's go out there and show them our last victory wasn't a fluke."

We cheered in agreement before getting into our positions for the tip off, Imayoshi was my mark and I was not happy in the slightest but if anyone could hope to keep tabs on him, it was probably me and my eagle eye.

"Nice to see you again Shun."

"Don't address me as if I'm your friend." I hissed. "We're far from it."

"I wouldn't expect anything less from the ones who tore down the spider web."

The blast of the referee's whistle tore my attention away, we came within inches of scoring but the ace of Touou put a stop to it, passing to Imayoshi in a rare instance of teamwork and the tyrants completely changed the dynamic of the match. The buzzer sounded as they scored, I caught Hyuuga's eye as we moved to reset play, this wasn't unexpected but it wasn't good either.

"You really thought we'd underestimate you?" Imayoshi sighed as he marked me. "If anything, your demonstration means we can finally have some fun, you and I."

"I'd rather die." I uttered, avoiding eye contact.

"You didn't say that last year."

I gritted my teeth, forcing myself not to remember that lapse in my judgement. I got free from his mark and received the ball only to pass it to Kuroko, Kagami seemed to be more with it as they went on to score like they always did. It carried on like that for a few minutes until Touou kicked into a new state of play, Aomine began to dominate the scoring and Kagami struggled to stop him. It all fell apart further when Kuroko tried to pass to Kiyoshi and Aomine intercepted the ball, our shadow seemed in denial about how his former team-mate could read his plays.

"You seem surprised Tetsu." Aomine remarked as the net swished, the rest of the teams squared up for the next sequence of play and seemed oblivious to the conversation. "Did you forget how well we knew each other?"

I could read Kuroko's expression, the normally stoic shadow was not surprised as such, more horrified. "I remember a lot of things Aomine-kun." He replied, picking the ball up and holding it in one hand.

"What do you remember more of? Being the shadow to my light or being the omega of our team?"

Kuroko's jaw clenched, he pulled back his free hand and rotated his arm, by the time I had realised what he was doing he was already ready to pull it off.

"Kuroko wait!" I called. "They haven't shaken their marks yet--"

Too late, he fired his ignite pass. It was flawless in execution but it had no-one to go to. Aomine stuck out his hand and stopped it without even flinching. I watched as Kuroko's fury melted away into complete heartbreak.

"Shadows don't exist without light." Aomine stated bluntly. "And omegas never surpass their alphas."

That pissed me off to no end, I couldn't imagine what Kuroko was going through as he stared at Aomine. The referee's whistle signalled a time out for us, Kagami was all kinds of pissed off with Aomine's behaviour, I was seething under my forced cool-headedness and the rest of the team were weary of what was going to happen now that Kuroko was basically out of commission.

The familiar sound of cracking neck muscles broke the silence.

"Keep passing to me." Hyuuga stated, looking at me. "I'll shoot three-pointers and we'll claw back this difference in points."

I held his gaze, he was confident in our abilities and he hadn't let us down yet once he went into clutch time. Riko had no issue with that, she benched Kuroko and put Koganei on the court. I felt bad for our first year but he couldn't contribute anything to our cause when he was so shaken up. Kagami paused in his pacing and cussing to knell in front of Kuroko, carefully cradling the shadow's face in his hands.

"It'll be okay." He uttered. "We believe you'll come back, just let me fight this battle for you."

The words hung in the air as Kuroko sniffed loudly, the rest of us had the manners to avert our gaze from his distressed face and channel our emotions into a new plan of attack. Hyuuga was going to be our main scorer whilst Kagami dealt with Aomine, I was going to somehow shake off Imayoshi and that would leave Kiyoshi and Koganei to defend our basket. In theory it was a good plan. What we didn't bank on was Sakurai's shots getting more and more accurate as Hyuuga kept scoring.

The second quarter was a shoot-out between the two of them, with Imayoshi and I coming face to face more times than I cared to. He always seemed to have this smirk on his face as he attempted to steal passes from me, his scent was making it hard for me to focus properly but I was managing for the most part. That was until Aomine got bored, whilst I was distracted by Imayoshi's haunting grin, Aomine intercepted my pass and ran away with it. Kagami tore after him but I could already tell it was a lost cause, I glared at Imayoshi instead, trying to work out why he still held his vendetta against me.

"It's like Aomine said, omegas never surpass their alphas." He sneered. "Maybe you should remember that."

"I was never your omega!" I snapped, gaining more attention than I wanted, Hyuuga looked like he was about to start something but he was held back by the fact that the referee was watching us all.

"You could've been." The rival captain breathed in my ear, suddenly very close to me. "But you threw the opportunity away, you were so naive. I could've taken you by force before you even presented but I held back, hoping that maybe you would come crawling back to me."

"Like hell." I uttered, stepping back from him. "I'd rather be a beta than be your omega by force."

He laughed. Aomine and Kagami had been having a face-off further down the court but that was the least of my worries as he glided past me. "So you let them take you by force instead? How interesting."

Whatever his intentions were, that one statement succeeded in throwing me off. He was right after all, they had pretty much taken me by force. The only difference between them and him was the fact that they loved me, but it was still set in motion by instinct rather than feelings.

"Are you okay?" Hyuuga asked his tone giving away how much he wanted to rearrange Imayoshi's face, Touou had called for a time out so we were granted a few minutes of rest bite. "I heard what he said--"

"You don't know the half of it Junpei." I replied, no-one else actually knew of the events Imayoshi kept referring to and it was going to stay that way if I could help it. "Just drop it. Let's focus on getting Kuroko back into play as soon as possible."

He didn't seem to believe me but he nodded anyway. Kagami was starting to crack under the pressure of keeping tabs on Aomine but he refused to back down, uttering something about how he owed it to Kuroko to challenge Aomine, but he also owed it to the team to beat the other ace. With half time only a few minutes away we were just told to keep up the defence and to pass to Hyuuga if possible. I was still reeling from Imayoshi dragging up the long dead past and both my lovers had noticed, I declined to tell them, if I was to tell them it wasn't going to be halfway through a match.

"Get out there then." Riko stated. "And don't fall into any of their fouling traps."

My instinct told me to avert my gaze from Imayoshi but that was exactly what he wanted from me; submission. Instead I held my gaze, feeling sick to my stomach as time seemed to slow.

_omegas never surpass their alphas_

The words echoed in my mind as I broke free from his mark and received the ball, I'd not only shake his effect from me but I'd also prove them wrong. I fired the ball into Hyuuga's hands and he scored even with Sakurai's attempt to interfere. The next thing I was aware of was the two captains were face-to-face, I had forgotten that Hyuuga was still in clutch time and that he was ridiculously unpredictable.

"Stay away from him." Hyuuga hissed.

"Can't, I have to mark him." Imayoshi shrugged with grin. "Do you have a problem with me being so close to _your_ omega?"

Kiyoshi wasn't turning a blind eye to the exchange either, I could sense the irritation rolling off him as Hyuuga got up in Imayoshi's personal space and uttered something I couldn't hear. Judging by Imayoshi's sudden expression change, I grasped that it wasn't a pleasant remark. The referee waded over and parted them, sensing the rise in tension, before the half time buzzer sounded.

 

\---

 

Kuroko had done some thinking whilst watching the events unfold, as we rested up in the changing room he shared his knowledge with us about his misdirection and how he could still use it to help us. Riko seemed unconvinced but let him have his piece. With a lack of a better plan, we decided to roll with it. Koganei would come off the court and Kuroko would come back on during the fourth quarter, with any luck Kagami would be able to shut Aomine down before then and we'd be able to get somewhere.

"Don't talk to him." Hyuuga told me as the rest of the team filed out.

"He started it." I uttered.

"Well don't encourage him! He's just like Hanamiya, he'll draw you in and then ruthlessly torture you."

I wanted to tell him that he was actually rather accurate with that description but that would pave the way for more questions. I nodded and we followed our team-mates out onto the court. Two more quarters remained and we were down by two points. Kagami had renewed purpose as he stepped out under the lights, his eyes met Aomine's and we could already feel the tension burning. Kuroko was still a little shaken up as he sat on the bench and watched with a concerned but determined gaze, I exhaled heavily as I prepared for another mental battle with Imayoshi.

Aomine seemed to relish this challenge from Kagami and was playing harder as the game restarted, our ace kept up with him, twisting and turning to mark him as he worked his way around the court. The rare occasions that the ball was passed to someone else were quickly over as it was stolen back, I felt dizzy just trying to keep watching them.

"You might as well give up." Imayoshi smirked. "He won't catch up. Without your trump card you're dead in the water."

"You don't know anything." I snapped.

"You've got spirit, I'll give you that." He laughed. "Be realistic, you're just a team of first and second years without much experience, you've done well to get this far, but spirit alone won't close the skill gap between our two teams."

I gritted my teeth as the words sunk in. Each of Aomine's shots were flawless and Kagami was barely keeping up let alone stopping him. We had our doubts if it was even possible in this situation as Aomine went for another formless shot. It looked like once again Kagami wouldn't catch up in time, however he proved that looks could be deceiving as he pushed himself further and batted the ball out of the other's hand. The crowd went wild at the display and even we were more than a little shocked.

It was a turning point, Kagami regarded Aomine with a determined look, I noticed Kuroko watching from the sidelines with wide eyes as his two lights challenged one another. Kiyoshi caught the rebound and shouted for us to get a move on, we snapped into gear and tried to take advantage of Touou being shell-shocked. The two aces seemed to be in their own world as the match continued around them, neither backing down from the other.

We scored, I noted how Hyuuga's clutch time appeared to be fading away, although we couldn't afford to let up. With Kuroko meant to be back on the court in just a few minutes we had to secure a lead or at least be level, Koganei was reaching his limit anyway with such a fast pace of play being set. Just as we thought that things had maybe calmed enough with the aces to continue our normal style, everything erupted.

"Aomine's in the zone." Hyuuga hissed as we fell into our defensive roles. "And Kagami isn't."

I swallowed, throat dry and heart racing as Aomine moved fluidly around the court, Kagami on his heels and almost able to predict the other's moves and attempting to block him. We should've known it was only a matter of time, the rival ace seemed to completely see through us as he weaved in between us and scored.

I felt Kiyoshi's hand on my back as I leaned forward and panted, this match was unlike anything I had played before. Thankfully, or not depending on your viewpoint, the third quarter ended soon after with Touou ahead of us by six points. Kuroko was already geared up to come back on the court but we were beginning to doubt whether it would work now.

"We have to keep going." Hyuuga uttered, pouring water over his head. "There's no way this ends now."

"I agree." Koganei added, handing me a towel to wipe the sweat from my face. "You can do it guys."

"But if Aomine's in the zone--" Furihata started before he was cut off.

"Forget about that." Kuroko murmured, tugging his sweatbands as he stood to the side of the team. "I believe in Kagami-kun. I also believe in our style of basketball. My misdirection may have run out but that means that now's the best time to go with the plan."

There was a moment of silence, the plan would work but we'd also be shooting ourselves in the foot. We'd never be able to play and beat Touou again after this last quarter. Ultimately it was up to Hyuuga, he was the captain and he was the one who could overrule Riko's judgement on the matter if he really disagreed that much.

"If you believe it'll work..." He murmured, staring at the floor. "Then we believe in you Kuroko. You have one shot at this remember and if it works then this is your last chance at beating Aomine." He stood up and approached the first year, I didn't know what he was doing but all eyes were on them as he reached out his hand. "Show him that being an omega doesn't mean anything."

I smiled slightly as Kuroko took his hand and shook it. Kagami stood up abruptly and tossed his towel at Fukuda, the ace walked over to Kuroko and ruffled his hair. "Let's go get 'em, Tetsu." He declared.

Aomine was still in the zone when we restarted, surprisingly enough though, he didn't immediately get possession of the ball. Imayoshi dominated the play for the first few seconds before halting just in front of me. I swallowed and willed myself to focus, my eagle eye evaluating the situation as quickly as I could before he passed to Sakurai. This passage of play bothered me, we both knew he could easily dodge me but he chose to pass to a team-mate, why?

Kuroko hadn't actually started his plan yet, we wanted to get a feel for what Touou had planned before launching into it. We put our faith in Kuroko and we promised we'd follow his lead.

"I would've thought that he'd be out for good. After all, your trump card ran out of power." Imayoshi remarked as the ball bounced out of play.

I let myself smirk, catching him off guard. "So it might've but that doesn't mean we're giving up."

"Come off it Shun, you've failed. We're ahead and Aomine isn't slowing down any time soon, just accept defeat and try again next year."

"There is no next year." Kuroko stated from beside us, he was being marked by Susa so that meant they could see him, which was the signal I was waiting for. I received the ball from Kiyoshi and locked eyes with Imayoshi.

"We win this now." I added, exhaling as I bounced the ball, doing just as Kuroko had told us when he explained how his vanishing drive worked, it succeeded in confusing Imayoshi long enough for me to move around him and shoot.

The buzzer sounded, the crowd went wild as I high-fived Kuroko and we moved to restart. Our celebrations were short lived as Imayoshi led the charge up the court but he was rattled, the smirk had been wiped from his face as he made to pass to Sakurai. Hyuuga took it as a chance to strike, using the same technique as me to intercept the pass and go on to score. We were only two points behind when they fell back on their ace.

Kagami had been marking Aomine but now that Touou were unsettled the rival ace was their main scorer once again. If there was any doubt over Aomine's passion to play then it was dissolved in the few seconds it took for him to overwhelm us. I was beginning to tire, conscious of how much pressure I had put on my body this match, I didn't want him to rear his foul head but sure enough, he did.

"Getting a bit hot and bothered?" Imayoshi remarked. He was probably looking to gain a mental advantage over us now that we were all feeling the effects of the fast paced playing.

"I'll be fine." I hissed, stepping away from him.

"You wouldn't want to put yourself under too much pressure though, can't imagine it would be good in the long run."

"What did I tell you?" Hyuuga barked, I froze, thinking the worst but he actually stood between me and Imayoshi. "I said to leave him alone."

Imayoshi sniggered. "Protective of your little omega?"

"Stay away from my team." Hyuuga growled, his clutch time personality blending with his alpha one.

"Just because your letting your omega follow his true calling. It's all he's probably good for."

Kagami had been facing off with Aomine during this altercation between captains and as a result had caught most of the referee's attention. I half expected Hyuuga to lose his temper but Kiyoshi's strong hand pulled him away, towering over Imayoshi in his place.

"Shoichi." He uttered. "I seem to remember that you have your own omega."

I was somewhat terrified of where this was going. Riko had called a time out but I was rooted to the spot watching my two alphas confronting Imayoshi, as were most of the other players.

"Makoto?" Imayoshi sighed, smirking slightly. "He knows his place in this world."

"Maybe we should tell him what you think of omegas."

Imayoshi shrugged. "I doubt he'd believe anything you say."

I saw the brief flicker of dismay grace Kiyoshi's face. "That's where you're wrong."

The referee blasted his whistle to separate us all, I was shaken up as Riko lectured Hyuuga about his temper until he pretty much repeated word for word what Imayoshi had been saying all match. Kagami was fuming but he was behaving rather calmly as I wiped my face with a towel and sighed heavily.

"Okay. I'm taking him down." Kagami stated, there was a spark in his eye as he strode out onto the court and stood in front of Aomine. "We're not giving up now."

They were both in the zone, it was insane to step out onto the court again and feel the buzz. They were both coated in sweat and panting as they sized each other up, the ball immediately got passed to Aomine who set off like lightning. I was shocked by the sheer speed that they both exhibited but also how they blocked each other's shots with little to no effort. There was no way that the balance could sustain itself.

"Kiyoshi-san, I have a plan." Kuroko piped up.

I focused more on keeping my eyes on the duelling aces as they continued to waste time. We needed to score before time ran out or we'd be tied and it would turn into a shoot-out. Kuroko's plan depended on Aomine having the ball and nearly scoring, I didn't like the odds myself but I put my trust in him nonetheless. Sure enough when they next came charging down towards our basket Kiyoshi was in position to go through with whatever Kuroko had planned. It looked to any outsider that Aomine had simply overwhelmed both him and Kagami but I noticed how there was a slight hesitation to their movements, almost like this was scripted - which it was - which was good enough to fool Aomine.

When the ball missed and hit the rim of the basket, there was a gasp. There was little time to recover as Kuroko had hold of the ball and Kagami was sprinting down the court. I helplessly watched as Kuroko and Aomine locked eyes.

"Aomine-kun." He stated, pulling his arm back again and rotating it. "Kagami-kun is my alpha. Whilst I may never surpass him in skill, we will be something you and I never were; equals."

He fired the ball down the court to Kagami who accepted it without trouble and went on to dunk, a buzzer beater to end the match. A cheer went up in the stands, I found Kiyoshi hugging me from behind as he chuckled into my neck. We'd won. We'd beaten Touou.

Kuroko held his gaze with Aomine even as the rest of the team came onto the court to celebrate. I couldn't help but feel sorry for Aomine in that moment, whatever had happened between them had left its mark and now Kuroko had moved on.

"Tetsu..." Aomine murmured, weary of Kagami's presence. "...I-I."

"It's okay Aomine-kun." Kuroko interrupted, a small smile on his face. "I know." He offered his hand to the other in a friendly manner. Aomine closed his hand into a fist and offered it in return. There was a pause before Kuroko mirrored his action and they bumped fists. I gathered this was a significant gesture between the two of them but it was over before I knew it.

It was only the first match of the tournament, but this was by no means a small victory for us.

The changing room was buzzing with happiness but also exhaustion. I felt relieved, Kiyoshi ruffled my hair as I sat down and sighed. The freshmen were in high spirits and commending us on our performance, bustling about getting our stuff together for us on the account we were so tired. Hyuuga was talking to Riko outside about something - probably getting yelled at for losing his temper - so we were on our own for now. Kagami and Kuroko hadn't said anything to each other for a few minutes, I was watching them intently as the ace approached the shadow and ran a hand through his hair.

"Did you mean it?" Kagami asked. "When you said I'm your alpha?"

Kuroko smiled, it was a smile we'd only seen during victories but there it was just at the mention of Kagami being his alpha. I couldn't help but feel a little warm inside at the scene before me as Kuroko nodded, brought his hand up behind Kagami's head and pulled the ace down into a kiss. The rest of the team erupted into wolf whistles and cheers and I had a feeling that it wasn't going to be a quiet night at home today.

 


	11. Pillow forts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just some nice fluff before we have another dramatic match, also these chapters are getting longer and longer.  
> Sidenote: Big Hero 6 is an awesome film and I highly recommend it.

In a way it was a blessing that we were so exhausted, within half an hour of clearing up the dishes after a quick evening meal I was falling asleep on the couch in Hyuuga's arms. It was a calm atmosphere in the lounge area that evening, we had kept a mild mannered conversation going but the match was really starting to take its toll on us now.

"It's only nine..." Kiyoshi murmured as he yawned. "Man, are really that tired?"

Hyuuga chuckled, running a hand through my hair. "We should probably go to bed then, Riko's excused everyone from practice tomorrow anyway."

I hummed in partial agreement, the dramatic confrontations between the alphas on the court had made me feel slightly uneasy, my outburst at Imayoshi had alerted Hyuuga to the fact that we had a history and now my conscience was telling me that I needed to come clean. Nothing would be mentioned tonight though, Hyuuga lightly shook me to get me to sit up, Kiyoshi scooped me up in his arms and kissed my cheek, I mumbled a complaint about how I could walk but he simply smiled at me and continued to carry me into the bedroom. With the lights turned out and the blankets pulled up around us, I sighed in content, feeling Kiyoshi's chest against my back as he gently held me and Hyuuga's tender caress on my cheek.

"I love you." Hyuuga whispered, shuffling closer to me. "You know that right? This whole thing isn't about the alpha-omega dynamics...I love you Shun."

I couldn't read his expression in the dark but I gathered that Imayoshi's comments had made him paranoid. I found his hand and squeezed it, giving him some reassurance as I felt Kiyoshi rest his head on my shoulder.

"Yeah Junpei, I know." I replied. "You've made sure I know that-- you both have."

He exhaled and seemed to relax a little. "I've never thought of you to be below me, you're my best friend and none of this changes that."

Kiyoshi hummed in agreement. "We just want to protect you more, you know how some alphas are."

I nodded, feeling sleep beginning to take over. "Let's just sleep." I breathed, wanting to drop the subject already. "I want us to sleep."

They both chuckled but agreed, light kisses being pressed to my cheek before they finally settled down. Sleep came easily as the full toll of the match took hold. I slept through the night without trouble, waking up in the soft morning glow and hearing both of them still fast asleep. Careful not to wake them, I eased myself out of bed and made my way into the kitchen area, I didn't expect to find Kuroko up, however I wasn't surprised at the mark on his neck that mirrored mine.

"So it's official now?" I asked, gesturing to his neck.

He nodded, offering a small smile. "I told him not to until I had cleared the air with Aomine-kun. We had parted on tense terms and he was still under the impression that he was my unofficial alpha. It would've been unfair to play yesterday after being claimed, I owed him that much."

I couldn't argue with that logic, in a way I admired Kuroko's maturity. I couldn't say that I would've done the same in his shoes. He had been idly clearing up the dishes from last night's meal as we spoke, our lovers all still asleep as we started thinking about trying to cook breakfast.

"I'm not a good cook." He confessed. "Taiga usually takes care of it all, I help with small things though."

I chuckled. "Can you fry an egg?"

 

\---

 

Kagami seemed genuinely surprised when he walked out of his room to find breakfast already made and waiting for him. It wasn't anything special, just whatever I knew how to cook from the food available which turned out to be fried eggs and natto, with Kuroko finding some oranges left over from my cravings and slicing them up.

"You both made this?" He asked, inspecting the simple meal. Hyuuga and Kiyoshi looked rather amused about the whole thing as they watched Kagami's reaction.

"You seem to think I can't cook?" I remarked.

"Eh?! No, I mean--" Kagami suddenly got very flustered as he sat down and rubbed the back of his neck. "I wasn't expecting it."

I exchanged a glance with Kuroko as the ace took his first bite, he raised an eyebrow before nodding at both of us. Hyuuga had already finished and had apparently been more than satisfied by it - natto was his favourite after all - Kiyoshi was halfway through and hadn't said anything about it yet.

"So what are we doing today?" I asked as Kagami continued to eat.

"Well we could go and watch the other matches. I know Riko's going with...actually I don't know who." Hyuuga replied, adjusting his glasses as he thought. "She just said that she already had someone to go with so to not worry about it. So we could just stay home today."

"I like that idea." Kagami said, mouth full of food.

It was pretty much decided that we'd all stay in and have a lazy day to ourselves. Kagami cleared away the plates, thanking Kuroko and I for making breakfast as he did so, before declaring that we could have a movie marathon and just chill all day. I felt like I should shower at least, even if we were just going to sit around all day, so I told them start without me whilst I showered.

The warm water felt good, my body had felt stiff and no amount of stretching had eased the tension in my muscles so far. I was slowly getting used to my changing body, of course it was still strange and beyond my comfort zone but the reality of the situation was that; like it or not it was going to happen so I might was well just learn to live with it. I didn't dwell too long though, mainly because I just wanted to get back to the others and curl up on the couch with them. However I did pause and run my fingers over the small bump, water droplets ran down my pale skin, dripping from my hair as I cast my eyes downwards and I smiled slightly, thinking about how different it'll be a year from now. The memory of seeing the image on the monitor and hearing the heartbeat of this new life came back as my hand rested over it. There was something very real about this all now.

After a few more minutes of contemplation and water washing over me, I got out and dried myself off, pulling on some fresh clothes as I heard the buzzer of the apartment phone go off. Kagami answered it and seemed confused about the person on the other end, I happened to walk out just as he put the phone down with a sigh.

"So that was Koganei." He declared. "Him and Mitobe are here to hang out."

There was more confusion but we weren't about to turn away our friends, I crawled into Kiyoshi's embrace as they tried to decide on a movie to no avail. Koganei and Mitobe arrived shortly afterwards and bought a bit of life to the apartment, especially considering Kagami's couches weren't big enough for six people.

"We should just make a pillow fort and be done with it." Koganei sighed. "I mean, we're already sat on top of each other, we might as well make it more comfortable."

I raised an eyebrow, Kiyoshi chuckled and commented on how he liked the idea, Hyuuga scoffed at first and doubted whether Kagami had enough pillows and blankets - which the ace proudly stated he did - before getting up and already starting to plan how it would all fit together. Kuroko and I took refuge in the kitchen and watched from the safety of the island counter as the others manhandled the furniture around the relatively spacious room, I found myself laughing at the alphas disagreeing on basic physics as Koganei threw pillows into Mitobe's hands.

After a bit more light-hearted arguing, they managed to agree to make more of a large nest out of pillows and blankets on the account that putting a 'roof' on would only be asking for trouble. Kagami decided to make everyone drinks as the rest of us got settled amongst the plush pillows and pretty much piled on top of each other again. Koganei was pretty much adamant that I had to let him cuddle me, I expected Hyuuga and Kiyoshi to object but they actually chuckled and shrugged it off. So I ended up being drawn into Koganei's arms as Kagami bought the drinks over and finally decided we were gonna watch a film he found in the local entertainment store.

"I don't think there's such a place as San Fransokyo, Taiga." Kuroko remarked after reading the back of the dvd case.

"No shit, it's a kids film." Kagami sighed. "Just bear with me yeah?"

We laughed, it was great to be at ease with my friends, we needed to hang out like this more often regardless of how the rest of the tournament went. Koganei kept running his fingers through my hair as I rested my head in his lap, my legs were draped across Hyuuga's, he'd lightly rub circles into my calves as Kiyoshi wrapped an arm around his shoulder and pressed a kiss to the captain's cheek. Mitobe had hold of Koganei's other hand and was resting on his thigh as Kagami flopped down next to Kuroko and coaxed him to sit on his lap as the movie started.

 

\---

 

"Well that was something." Hyuuga remarked, sitting up and stretching as the credits rolled.

"Y'know I can't help but think that Wasabi reminds me of someone..." Koganei nodded towards Kiyoshi. "Or maybe Tadashi!"

"Kuroko and Baymax share some similarities." I murmured, getting a laugh out of Kagami as Kiyoshi shook his head at Koganei's remark.

The small coffee table that had been partially used as foot rest was now littered with soda cans and empty chip packets, no-one really wanted to move from where we were comfortably sprawled out. Light conversation started as we simply relaxed feeling content in each other's presences, the lines between alphas and omegas were blurred as the day wore on. We were about to start deciding on lunch when the apartment phone buzzed again, Kagami was less than impressed at having to move Kuroko off his lap and get up, the shadow quickly found himself in Kiyoshi's arms as his lover went to find out who else was joining us.

"Slow down--" Kagami's slightly irritated voice spoke to whoever was on the phone. "--okay I get it but--"

I sat up and yawned, Koganei taking the opportunity to stretch his legs a bit since I had pretty much been led on them all through the movie. Hyuuga's hand found mine and he brought it to his lips as Kagami called to us that one of the first years needed to talk to us about something.

"Which one?" Hyuuga called back.

"Furihata."

I was slightly concerned but figured that it wouldn't be too serious. We shuffled around a bit so that he could sit between Koganei and I, by the time he arrived we had sent out for a pizza delivery and gotten a new round of drinks, he seemed nervous at first when he entered the apartment but quickly warmed up as he took his place in the 'nest'.

"So what's up Furi?" Koganei asked, the rule of everyone being on a first name basis felt odd in this situation so we decided to go back to our usual ways of addressing each other.

The brunette smiled slightly, not really keeping eye contact with anyone as he bought his knees up to his chin. I exchanged a glance with Koganei before gently wrapping an arm around him and rubbing his upper arm reassuringly.

"You can tell us anything." I murmured. "We're all friends here."

The silence in the apartment was quickly gotten rid of by Kagami flicking the TV to a random music channel, the background noise would probably help Furihata calm down a little.

"So you know how I followed Kuroko to when he met the other miracles?" He uttered, Kuroko pulling himself out of Kiyoshi's grasp to crawl closer to us. "Well o-obviously they're all alphas--"

"Except Kise-kun." Kuroko corrected.

"Yeah, well I expected them to feel intimidating but I just felt my body give out on me-- I don't know why, I just couldn't look at him."

I raised an eyebrow. "Him?"

Kuroko had his gaze fixed on Furihata, he smiled as he reached out and took Furihata's hand in his. "Akashi-kun."

Furihata's face flushed red, he swallowed and averted his gaze. "I-I don't know why."

"He's the only one out of all them who hasn't claimed an omega." Kuroko explained to us. "As a result his presence is more potent than most alphas."

I nodded, if the miracles really had presented back in middle school, then it would make sense that Akashi's scent would be more overwhelming if he hadn't settled down already. Furihata seemed neither upset or happy at this news.

"So it's just because he's never..."

"I didn't say he's never been with someone. He's just not chosen anyone to be his one and only."

The alphas in the room seemed to have a lot to say on this matter, but likewise Kuroko was the one who knew the most about Akashi so they couldn't really add much to this debate. I kept rubbing Furihata arm reassuringly as he leaned against my chest, letting me properly hug him. I had another theory as to why he was feeling so confused but I wasn't about to scare him further.

"It'll be okay." I told him. "Just forget about it yeah?"

He nodded and smiled weakly. "So what were you guys doing before I arrived?"

We picked up the conversation from before about plans for after the Winter cup, it would be December and Christmas wouldn't be far away so there were calls for a small party of sorts. Kagami had intended to return to America for the week of the holiday but since presenting and becoming Kuroko's alpha he had called that plan off, deciding to spend it in Japan instead.

Obviously our plans for Christmas were going to revolve around how often I could face leaving the apartment, I had thought far enough ahead to be adamant about not going anywhere massively overcrowded once I was deemed 'heavily pregnant'. I could put up with the weird glances now because it wasn't obvious yet, but once the Winter cup was done I wasn't leaving the safety of my bed.

"When _are_ you due?" Koganei asked me. "It's gotta be pretty soon after Christmas?"

I shrugged, the doctor was supposed to tell us but male omega pregnancies were so unpredictable that sometimes it was hard to tell. "I'm guessing end of January or beginning of February."

"Near Kuroko's birthday?" Kagami chuckled. "That would be an interesting celebration."

"You thought of names yet? Oh what about god parents? Remember what I said about the Mafia--" Koganei perked up immediately.

"Koga!" I laughed. "You're not gonna corrupt our child by getting them to join the Mafia."

"But Itzuki!"

Furihata seemed to be more relaxed now, he was smiling and laughing - mainly at Koganei - as we continued to joke about the other's parenting habits. Pizza arrived and we quickly got stuck in, I snuggled up against Hyuuga after eating, feeling full and content with everything. He lazily ran a hand through my hair as Kagami and Koganei got into a debate about the best films involving the Mafia. Kiyoshi had coaxed Furihata over to him and was letting the first year slowly fall asleep in his loose hold, Mitobe tugged Koganei onto his lap which seemed to have an immediate effect in getting him to stop babbling, his voice slowly trailing off and eventually slipping into a light slumber.

"We don't half act like a pack." Kagami murmured, Kuroko was awake still but was curled up in the ace's lap and could easily drop off as well.

"Don't start with that talk." Hyuuga uttered.

"Just because you're not ready to be called dad." Kiyoshi remarked, getting a glare in response.

"No, it's more that if I'm the so-called 'dad' then which one of you two is the pack mother?"

I snorted. "Does there have to be one?"

"Do we have to have labels at all?" Kiyoshi added.

Hyuuga sighed heavily and removed his glasses, rubbing the bridge of his nose before reaching down to pick them up again from his lap. I quickly snatched them up and put them on, he tried to get them back but only succeeded in pinning me against the layer of pillows forming the floor of the nest. Kiyoshi tried not to laugh too much as Furihata was asleep with his head on Kiyoshi's shoulder, Mitobe was watching with a smile on his face and Koganei was somehow still asleep as I wriggled away from Hyuuga trying to get his glasses back with a giggle. He was trying not to laugh, mainly because he needed his glasses to see properly - he could see reasonably well without them which was why it was amusing to take them away from him - but also because we didn't want to wake the others.

"Why are you such a pain?" He breathed, smile on his face as I stuck my tongue out in response.

"I don't _see_ what you're talking about." I replied, adjusting the glasses.

"Give them back--" He moved quickly but I moved faster, pulling him down on top of me and mashing our lips together. He let out a startled noise before smiling into the rushed kiss and pulling back again.

"You can have them back now." I smiled, slipping them off and offering to him. He rolled his eyes and playfully poked my forehead.

"You're such a pain." He repeated. "But a loveable one."

The rest of the afternoon was spent in the same company, when the sun began to set Kagami gently eased the now sleeping Kuroko off his lap and into my arms so he could turn on the lights. I was getting used to being used as a human heater as the shadow buried his face in my shirt whilst he was still asleep.

"Must be a motherly thing." Kiyoshi whispered, Hyuuga had gotten up to help Kagami sort out the empty pizza boxes and decide if there was going to be another meal or not.

"I guess." I replied, running a hand through the younger male's hair. "I suppose it's good practice."

A small noise of amusement left Mitobe, it was about the only sound he ever made but it was enough to attract our attention. Koganei had a habit of making small noises when he slept - something I had learned when I shared a room with him on a school trip - and today was no exception. I stifled the chuckle that was prompted from the soft snores of our friend, shifting my sitting position so my legs didn't go numb, Kuroko was a very still sleeper at first, I didn't expect him to move at all until he nearly head-butted my chin. Kiyoshi and Mitobe smiled at my stunned face, the shadow mumbled something in his sleep as he settled back down in my hold. I exhaled, trying not to say anything as I held him. Kagami merely raised an eyebrow at me as he returned to fetch his wallet, Hyuuga quietly told us that him and Kagami were going food shopping so we'd be on our own for an hour or two. 

Once they were gone Kiyoshi, Mitobe and I found something to watch on TV, a cheap reality show of sorts just to have some background noise, and made light conversation. I absent-mindedly ran my hand through Kuroko's hair as he continued to sleep, my actions felt so natural that when I caught both of the alphas gazing at me fondly I was confused.

"You really are a natural." Kiyoshi murmured, Mitobe nodded in agreement.

"Hardly. I'm just used to doing this with Mai." I replied. "She always seemed to want to sit on _my_ lap and fall asleep." I rolled my eyes.

"He's so at ease though." Kiyoshi gestured to how Kuroko at curled into my hold as opposed to just lying where Kagami had placed him. "Whereas Furi here is stiff at a board almost."

I shook my head slightly, I could see what they were getting at but it really didn't feel any different to caring for my sister. Kuroko didn't show any sign of waking up, I didn't mind too much until Furihata startled himself awake and in turn woke up Koganei. The first year seemed embarrassed about falling asleep in our presence, even with Kiyoshi and I assuring him that it was fine, he seemed to relax a little more as he spotted Kuroko still asleep on my lap.

"I guess his misdirection takes a lot out of him huh." He remarked as he got up to leave.

"Yeah, the fact we made it run out yesterday and it was a high stakes match probably didn't help." I replied, looking down at him fondly. "When Taiga gets back then we'll probably wake him up."

Furihata nodded, he thanked us for letting him hang out with us and listening to his paranoid thoughts, we told him we were more than happy to help him out and to call if he needs to. Koganei declared that him and Mitobe should get going, also thanking us for the fun day as they saw themselves out, leaving us alone in the apartment.

"He is effectively the baby of the team isn't he?" Kiyoshi murmured, gesturing to the youngest member of our team.

"At the moment." I chuckled. "My mother would say that he's got an old soul about him. Like someone else I know."

"Oh really?"

I smiled at him. "Yeah, you might know him, he's a basketball player for this little team called Seirin. He's got a heart of gold - a lot of people say iron but I know better - he's always there for his friends...and family. A gentle giant as it were."

"I'm sure he cares a lot for them."

"I know he does."

We regarded each other with soft smiles before he leaned closer and kissed me, hand coming up to gently hold my face. He shuffled close enough to wrap an arm around my shoulders, resting his head against mine and sighing.

"Is it bad that I can't wait?" He whispered. "For us to be actual parents?"

I swallowed and shrugged. "I mean, we're two months along...ish.." I uttered. "Another two and it would be around the time that most...they'll want me to..." I trailed off.

"I know it's weird to think about but we need to." He kissed my temple. "Have you thought about whether you want to--"

"You can't be there." I blurted out, feeling bad instantly but I had to tell him. "They don't let alphas in...something to do with instinct and how they can't watch their omegas suffer. I-I have to pick an omega to be with me but I can't just pick between my friends like that and you both would have to approve as well and it's all just too much Teppei...there's so much to think about."

He kissed my head again and hushed me. "I know, Junpei and I have spoken about it. We agreed that you can pick whoever you want and we won't interfere. We want the best for you Shun, obviously if you pick someone we're all close to then it'll be easier to trust them but it's all up to you."

That made me feel better, I nodded and buried my face in the crook of his neck, Kuroko still resting against my chest fast asleep. It was a small weight off my shoulders, in comparison to the heap of unanswered questions and ignored topics still requiring attention, but a welcome one nonetheless.


	12. "I don't want to lose him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah these chapters are definitely getting longer...hm.
> 
> Also the ending just kind of happened...sorry?

 

Word got around to Riko that the first years had already run into the ace of Yousen, she wasn't pleased. I hadn't given it much thought when Kagami and Kuroko had been gone the entire day, I was far more focused on arguing with Kiyoshi about why it was vital that I had a strawberry milkshake that afternoon or else mount Fuji was going to erupt. Apparently they had gone to a street-ball tournament with the other first years and inadvertently run into the duo from our next big rivals, one of which Kagami had a history with.

"Childhood friends?" Hyuuga clarified. "You and their shooting guard."

Kagami nodded, taking off the chain from around his neck and placing the ring on the counter. "We're brothers...or we were."

I raised an eyebrow, the early morning chill clung to the apartment but that was the least of our concerns. We only had a few hours until our quarter-final match against the next miracle and Kagami seemed distracted.

"What happened?" I asked.

Kagami shrugged. "We didn't see eye to eye after we both came back to Japan from the states. We ended up at different schools and...well. Let's just say this match signals the end of our brotherhood."

 

\---

 

_[Hawkeye]: How are you feeling?_

_Okay. Our match starts in about half an hour. The freshmen are nervous but they'll be fine._

_[Hawkeye]: Good luck! Shin-chan and I will be watching :-)_

I smiled, slipping my phone into my locker and sitting down on the bench. The team were in high spirits even if we were scared half to death. Furihata was trembling slightly and Fukuda was doing his best to try and calm him down.

"Do you think he'll be watching?" Furihata asked me. "A-Akashi-kun."

I shrugged. "Possibly. Considering his two former team-mates are playing each other I wouldn't be surprised. Why?"

He didn't answer, I didn't miss the blush on his cheeks but that interrogation was for another time. I sighed and exchanged glances with Kiyoshi, Kagami and Kuroko were somewhere else, Riko had told us that she didn't mind us talking to other teams as long as we were back in the changing room ten minutes before match time.

"You know Yousen placed third in inter-high right?" Kawahara murmured, breaking the silence between us all. "And they've not let any of their opponents score yet this Winter cup."

It was true but dwelling on those points wouldn't help us win, Kiyoshi chuckled slightly and slipped his jersey on. "Just go out there and play your best." He smiled.

"We hardly ever start--" Fukuda started.

"But you're still part of our team." Hyuuga replied, shutting his locker loudly. "And you're just as important to our efforts. You're the future of this basketball team, who knows what's gonna happen after January when Shun has his baby. You guys will have to pick up the slack if we hope to compete in Inter-high."

They looked wide-eyed at each other, it wasn't the stirring speech one would expect from a captain but that didn't meant it wasn't effective.

"So maybe you won't play this match, or the next one, but never give up." Kiyoshi added. "You'll get your moment, just be ready for it. We've all been in your shoes before and trust us when we say that you'll be vital to victory one day."

It seemed to perk them up which was good. We were fairly relaxed considering what was waiting for us on that court, Riko arrived with clipboard in hand, she smiled at us before doing a head count and frowning slightly. We told her we didn't know where our aces were and that Furihata would call Kuroko and find out what was going on. She didn't seem annoyed, she hadn't banned us from leaving after all but she was going to lose her patience very quickly if they weren't back in five minutes.

They returned with twenty seconds to spare. Riko sighed heavily as Kagami quickly shoved his bag in his locker and declared he was ready. She gave us the team talk that consisted mainly of 'Yousen are powerful but don't worry' and 'Stick with the plan we agreed on but improvise if you need to', specifically singling out me as point guard to make the calls for a change of pace.

"So with that said, get out there and win." She finished as the call went out for both teams to report to the arena for the pre-match warm up.

 

\---

 

The first quarter was a disaster for us. We knew Yousen would be strong and difficult to score past, to be down by eighteen points was soul-crushing but it was far from over. Murasakibara was the main source of our problems in relation to scoring, however stopping him was out of the question, aside from his massive build and impressive skills we were a little stuck in the mud as Kagami was partly distracted by Himuro's presence. I noted how the ace had been eerily calm so far, this was a drastic change of mood from the Touou match. Riko ran through what she had picked up about Yosen's play style and where we could potentially exploit the weaknesses...not that there were any to exploit. Kuroko piped up that he had a plan but couldn't go into much detail, which was freaking perfect.

Hyuuga slapped the back of my head as we stood up to restart. "Focus dummy."

I rolled my eyes, remembering what happened last time he said that to me. We had possession for the start of the second quarter, I could sense the presence of the miracle guarding the basket but he wasn't threatening like Imayoshi's presence had been, no he was much less worrisome. I found myself getting ganged up on as soon as I received the ball, losing my nerve slightly before passing to Kiyoshi. Yousen was literally impossible to break through, or that's what I thought, Kiyoshi attempted to move around Murasakibara to score, passing to Kagami to try and get an alley-oop. I could only watch as Okamura jumped to block it, all seemed lost until Kagami passed back to Kuroko.

"What is he doing?" I breathed, catching Hyuuga's eye, he seemed just as lost as I was. Kuroko couldn't shoot, he'd tried enough times in practice and always missed regardless of how much training Hyuuga and I gave him, we admired his commitment but the fact was, he couldn't shoot.

Murasakibara lunged in front of Kuroko as he set up his slightly odd-looking shooting form, on paper it would've been no contest. Even my eagle eye couldn't tell where the ball went at first, the buzzer sounded and our first points were on the board.

"...did he just..." I uttered, the crowd was stunned as well as the entire team. Kuroko had just scored our first points. Kagami high-fived him as we moved to restart, the truth was that Kuroko had applied the same technique to his Vanishing drive to his shooting and so the Phantom Shot had been created.

"When did you pick that up?" Hyuuga demanded from the first year. "We sure as hell didn't teach you that."

Kuroko shook his head, a small smile on his face. "I met up with an old friend and he gave me some advice."

That seemed to satisfy Hyuuga enough. We quickly became aware that Kagami's height and weight difference with Okamura was causing problems around the basket area, that and Kiyoshi and Murasakibara seemed to have some kind of history - if I found out it was another random hook-up from the middle school days I was going to scream - so this was more than we had anticipated.

"Relax." Hyuuga chided, noting my uneasy glances at the two of them. "Kiyoshi's just settling an old score from when Teikou wiped the floor with his middle school team." I huffed and ran a hand through my hair, trying to control the conflicting emotions within me.

Things flowed a bit better after Kuroko's shot, we had caught Yousen off guard with our trump card and our passes were more fluid, shooting was being taken care of by Hyuuga and Kagami. As soon as we'd score Yousen would hit back, either by scoring themselves or by blocking more attempts. It was getting harder to get past them as they started to read our plays, I tried to think of a way to mix things up again - Riko had called on me specifically after all.

"In and out?" Hyuuga asked sceptically as we watched Yousen score again. "Are you mad?"

"Yes." I smirked. "You're in love with a mad person, now get on with it." I received the ball and started down the court again. I called for the play change and swerved around Fukui, getting more into the swing of things as I neared the basket. Kagami had caught up and was doing his best to distract Murasakibara so I took a chance and made the shot and scored.

We were closing the gap slowly, I quickly retreated to wait for the counter-attack, play passed back and forth between the two teams, the clock was running down for the quarter so we decided to try something drastic. Kiyoshi out-rebounded Wei Liu and we set off on one final counter, Hyuuga lined up his three-pointer but made the split second decision to pass to Kuroko as Murasakibara loomed over him. Our shadow made his phantom shot count as the final seconds disappeared and half time was declared.

 

\---

 

"You need to beat Himuro." Riko told Kagami. "Kuroko's overflow won't work on Yousen because they're an inside team-- speaking of which why on Earth did you call an in-and-out play?" She turned her attention to me, she wasn't mad, more curious.

I shrugged, rubbing my face with a towel. "I felt like it was the right call."

"Well stick to the isolation play that we used against Touou. Pass to Kagami."

I bit my tongue, annoyed that she didn't seem impressed at my attempt to make choices for our play, she wasn't our coach for nothing though. Mitobe took up Kuroko's place in the line-up as we got back to the game, Kiyoshi caught me before we made it to the court and made me look him in the eye.

"You're doing fine." He told me. "Just keep doing what you're doing."

I nodded, shrugging off the hand on my shoulder. I exhaled as the ref's whistle went off, the ball was immediately in Himuro's hands and Kagami was right there with him, the ring hung around his neck almost as a reminder of what was at stake this match. The two of them exchanged words, the marks on Himuro's neck said more than his scent did and I realised this was more complex than I thought.

Himuro was out to prove a point; him and Kagami were no longer brothers, they weren't friends, they were rivals through and through. He faked a shot, Kagami falling for it, and going on to gracefully score a three-pointer. The history between the two of them didn't surround their status' but Aomine's words still rang in my mind. _Omegas never surpass their alphas_ , maybe this was the point he was trying to prove was wrong. Hyuuga matched the three-pointer with one of his own, we were still trailing by thirteen points as we worked to steal passes and block shots but something about the way Himuro shot meant Kagami couldn't block it, as a result we weren't going to close this gap any time soon.

The whistle blew, Kagami was subbed out for Tsuchida.

"Izuki." Kiyoshi called. "Let me take point guard."

"You want me to be centre?!" I exclaimed.

"No, use your eagle eye dummy." He chuckled. "But let me control the game. Kagami can't keep his emotions in check so we'll have to take the fight to Murasakibara whilst he sorts his head out."

I sighed. "Don't let him get to you Teppei." I murmured, switching marks with him.

I had no idea what he was playing at but I shrugged it off, he clearly had a plan and I'd have to get with the program quickly. My eagle eye was sharpening as the match went on, picking up on small opportunities to make a play but not quite getting there. Kiyoshi was taking the fight literally to Murasakibara as he charged towards the basket, swerving and spinning as he tried to shake the ace from his line of shot, he failed and got a scornful remark from the giant which irked me but I shoved it aside and forced myself to keep my cool. There was a plan. I immediately passed to Kiyoshi once I got possession, he made a three-pointer and gained a slightly irritated remark from Hyuuga.

"Oi, that's my move!"

"I learn from the best, _captain_." He beamed.

I exchanged glances with our team-mates as we stole possession again, I sensed that this was what Kiyoshi had been building up to and shook my mark to be there. He made out that he was going for a jump shot, fooling Murasakibara into blocking him. I received the ball and quickly ran through my options with my eagle eye, ascertaining the best plan of action was to pass it back once I had attracted both Murasakibara and Wei Liu's attention enough for him to dunk it without issue.

Surprisingly, it worked. We continued to run rings around them, effectively abandoning the centre position and implementing a due-point guard play of sorts. It wasn't going to win us the match but it would buy us time for Kagami and Kuroko to figure out how they were going to shut the game down.

"Kagami's back in, he's gonna go head-to-head with Himuro again so I'll go back to centre for now." Kiyoshi told me as Yousen called a time-out. "You did great by the way."

I smiled, actually feeling like I had achieved something. Hyuuga came up behind me and ruffled my hair as Kagami rejoined us, his ring was missing which was the sign that he had really gotten his head into the game finally and was prepared to go for broke. Watching the two of them face off was strange, it wasn't like when he faced off against Aomine, this was more personal, there were memories between them and a long history.

"So you're finally ready?" Himuro remarked, the faintest smirk on his face. He had kept a poker face for most of the match, occasionally frowning when we scored or outwitted them but this was the first sign of anything remotely similar to joy I'd seen from him.

"I'm done with your poor playing Tatsuya." Kagami replied, expression lacking emotion. "The real battle starts now."

In an impressive play, Himuro attempted two fakes and set up to shoot for a third time, Kagami batted the ball away and regarded his former brother with a raised eyebrow. The tension on the court had started building, Murasakibara seemed to get more riled up at this demonstration by Kagami which made me speculate further.

"Senpai."

"Fucking hell Kuroko--" I sighed, clutching my chest as I recovered from being startled. "When did you get put back in?"

"Call for the new defence formation."

"What are you--"

He was gone before I could comment, Mitobe was still on the court so I was very confused to say the least. Hyuuga was too far away to consult on the matter, so I had to make the decision myself which could potentially jeopardise or claim the game. As Kagami faced off again I noticed how he tried to jump to block the shot but slipped and jumped too late, however he seemed to have an epiphany of sorts. The ball moved quickly, I barely caught track of it as Kiyoshi got triple-teamed and fired it in my direction, I fumbled slightly and was pressured to make the shot as Murasakibara was close by, I missed and Kiyoshi out-jumped Murasakibara and dunks the ball in.

He then fell to the ground. I was by his side instantly as he sat up, rubbing the back of his head as he chuckled.

"Teppei." I hissed. "This isn't a laughing matter!"

"I'm fine love." He whispered, taking the hand Hyuuga offered to him. "I just slipped."

He was lying, he refused to sub out though and I couldn't make him so we hurriedly got back into the game. Things were getting hectic as Kagami and Himuro continued to battle and we tried to break through the defence. Hyuuga intercepted a pass and the chase was on, we charged down the court, Mitobe and I challenging Murasakibara as Kiyoshi got free of his mark. I passed, watching the ball miss and expecting the miracle to swipe it up but Mitobe had moved to block him from the hoop and dug his heels in, using his strength to buy Kagami enough time to dunk the ball in.

Koganei could be heard cheering loudly as we high-fived Mitobe and regrouped. The third quarter was only half over, it was insane that so much could happen so quickly and we were beginning to feel the burn.

"Hey, if you're getting light-headed--" Hyuuga started before I swatted him away.

"Quit it." I grumbled. "I'm fine."

There was something more unsettling about Murasakibara as we restarted, he came out of defence and started on the attacking front. I swallowed my fear about facing off against such a large player and shoved my paranoia away. My eagle eye couldn't have predicted how easily he tore through our defence and slammed the ball into the net - his move the so-called 'Thor's Hammer' - not shaking Kiyoshi as much as it shook me.

"Focus!" He yelled to me as I accepted the pass, sensing the giant behind me and passing back to Kiyoshi. A brave fast break by our centre proved futile as Murasakibara blocked him and set up for his own alley-oop, bringing the hoop down as he slammed the ball in again.

The crowd went silent.

The hoop was replaced, I was shaking slightly as we restarted, Kiyoshi was tiring quickly and I was trying to make it easier for him to score but I couldn't do much without attracting Murasakibara's attention. We were trailing by nine points after our brief run of good luck, luck that had run out it seemed as the miracle broke past both Kiyoshi and Kagami with a dunk. Kiyoshi fell to the ground again, I carefully watched and exchanged a glance with Hyuuga as Murasakibara towered over him. The giant appeared to help Kiyoshi up which was bizarre until I noticed that he wasn't letting Kiyoshi stand.

He was holding Kiyoshi in the air by his wrist.

A flash of fury ripped through me, accompanied by fear as in that moment I saw my alpha in danger and I felt that I needed to do something about it. Hyuuga caught my arm, holding me back as he hissed in my ear.

"Are you fucking stupid? He'll crush you."

"Are you just gonna stand by and let Teppei get hurt?" I fired back, watching the irritation mixed with hurt flash across his face.

Riko called a time-out. I refused to look at Hyuuga as Kiyoshi sat on the bench and was given a damp towel for his sore muscles. Kuroko would be subbed back in, the shadow stated that none of this was over until we won. I noted how fired up Kagami was and concluded that this could only lead to either complete failure or overwhelming victory. I was struggling to keep a cool head as Kuroko took up his place on the court, Himuro was still challenging Kagami so the task of taking down Murasakibara fell to the rest of us, we switched to our man-to-man defence so Kuroko could steal passes and cause havoc we managed to claw back some more points with Hyuuga's barrier-jumper and ended the third quarter with a five point difference.

The break was quick and I still refused to talk to Hyuuga, Riko either didn't notice or decided not to raise it as she dished out orders. Kiyoshi tried to reason with me on the matter but I was almost ready to lash out at him for putting himself in harm’s way again. I sighed, like it or not we had a game to play and I had to suck up my irritation and offer my support to the cause, victory would soften by bitterness.

I could be mad at Hyuuga later.

The last quarter began sloppily. Kagami and Himuro faced off again, I was starting to gather that our ace had figured something out finally and was trying to figure out how to block Himuro's shot. I watched as time after time he failed to stop it but seemed to gain a little more in the way of knowledge.

"Quit playing around Taiga or get off the court." Himuro remarked. "Face it, you can't stop me."

Kagami grunted, shaking slightly as he regarded his old friend. They continued to mark each other, much like he had done with Aomine but this was less animalistic in nature and more like a complex dance that they had been learning since they were children, it was almost tragic that they were now abandoning their friendship. After the fourth or fifth perfect shot Kagami hit the jackpot, he seemed to be floating in mid-air as he jumped, surprising Himuro as he batted the ball away and into Kuroko's hands.

He had stopped Himuro's mirage shot. I called for the ball and passed it along to Hyuuga so he could make a three-pointer, in a flash Murasakibara was there and stole the ball back, drippling down the court and setting up for his Thor's hammer move again. Kagami had barely moved from that part of the court when he leaped up and blocked it, stunning the rest of the Yousen team.

"...he's not." I uttered to no-one. Watching Kagami's body language, I could see the signs from our last match with a miracle which pointed to him entering the zone. Things were about to get interesting as Yousen called for a time-out, Himuro could be heard arguing with Murasakibara but my attention was torn away from the exchange by Hyuuga's hand holding my face.

"Calm down." He murmured, no trace of malice or anger in his voice, more concern. "You're starting to lose focus."

"I'm not."

He made a small noise of irritation. "You've tensed up, you only do that if you're injured or pissed off. On the account you’re not screaming in pain I'm betting you're annoyed with me."

I chose not to answer, which was an answer in itself.

"You can bitch at me later." He uttered, cracking his neck muscles. "But lose the attitude now."

My hands gripped my thighs as I sat on the bench, Furihata tenderly took my hands in his and gently squeezed them as I held my captain's gaze, he was on the edge of going into clutch time and I was on the verge of slapping the shit out of him. Riko cleared her throat loudly, glaring at both of us, it seemed like she was on the verge of hitting us both with the clipboard.

The game restarted, Kagami was still in the zone as he began to dominate the defence, only coming up short against Murasakibara occasionally. Himuro likewise was getting more desperate, although not in the zone he was playing with everything he had, passing to his ace and running rings around the rest of us. Our hopes rested with our ace and we were playing catch up. My heart was pounding, this match was getting as fast paced as the Touou game but with much more physical risk and I was starting to get overwhelmed by it all.

Against Riko's wishes, Kiyoshi rejoined the game. With our trustworthy centre back we clawed back the points difference further until we were level. Kagami was still in the zone as he faced off against Himuro one last time, the realisation seemed to his the older male as his eyes widened.

"Taiga..." He uttered. "You know what this means."

"I wish we hadn't made that bet Tatsuya." Kagami replied. "But I'm honouring it."

He swerved around the other with ease, Murasakibara moved to block him, Kagami read the situation quickly and leapt unexpectedly. I watched as he soared through the air, completely unfazed by the other ace's presence as he slammed the ball into the basket. The noise in the arena was insane as the buzzer sounded. Himuro got possession, he was rattled and shaking like mad as we waited for the referee to let us restart.

We were in the lead, we had less than half a minute left on the clock, we were going to win. Our hopes were dashed within two seconds of restarting, Murasakibara had entered the zone.

"Fuck sake." I cussed, a toxic mixture of fury and disappointment running through me. Himuro passed a full court pass to Murasakibara and I prayed to every deity I knew of that he'd miss the shot. Kiyoshi had been running point guard the past few plays and he'd been forcing Murasakibara to keep jumping, throwing his balance off as he made the shot.

A flash of blue surprised me, my eyes were on the ball as it left Murasakibara's hands suddenly, the complete opposite direction to where he was aiming. A gasp left the crowd as the ball bounced out of play and the clock ran down. Koganei nearly knocked me flying as he hugged me, I was bewildered, we'd won? How? Kuroko was getting high-fived by Hyuuga and Kagami, he had been on the court? Since when?

"Hey...are you okay?" Koganei's worried voice pierced my thoughts.

I shook my head and pushed him away, immediately heading out of the arena and ignoring his calls to me. I felt like vomiting my guts into the nearest trash-can. I made it back to the locker room, tears in my eyes as I locked myself in one of the restroom cubicles and sunk to the floor. I wasn't sure what came over me, maybe it was the heightened stress, maybe Imayoshi's words were still affecting me, Kiyoshi's fall was plaguing my mind as well as how I had been so rude to Hyuuga when he was only trying to help me.

My body was quivering from the adrenaline of the match, sweat was cooling on my skin, my kit was sticking to me as I tried to regain control of my breathing. I was aware that the team would be worried about me but I just needed to have this moment with myself, to release the pent up frustration at everything, the way I had played, how my emotions had gotten the best of me in the final moments of a high-stake match, how I hadn't noticed that one of our key players was even playing.

"...stupid fucking omega." I sobbed, concluding that everything that had gone wrong was my fault.

The door to the locker room burst open, I bit down on my thumb to stay silent, whoever it was walked around the main locker area before pacing back to where the showers were. I stayed on the floor and prayed that they would leave me alone. There was a pause in their footsteps, I heard them sigh heavily and utter something before another set of footsteps spooked them.

"Junpei." Riko barked, she was riled up as she strode into the room. "You better explain yourself _right_ now."

"R-Riko." He hesitated. "I don't know--"

"Don't try that bullshit with me." She seethed. "The way you spoke to him in that last break tore him apart. You're meant to be his best friend, his lover, and you just humiliated him in front of your team mates in the middle of a match!"

I buried my face in my arm, desperate to not get caught now. Hyuuga didn't reply at first, I gathered he was ashamed of himself by the tone he took when he did eventually respond.

"I guess I got caught up in the moment."

"That's not a good enough excuse to lash out at the guy who's carrying your child." Riko stated, she was beyond annoyed, she was furious given her cold tone. "Junpei, you need to make it up to him. I'm not talking about a simple apology either, I'm talking about you completely fessing up and admitting that you were so out of line that you'd be lucky he doesn't dump your ass."

My eyes widened, I hadn't even considered taking that move. I couldn't imagine life without him, sure I was pissed as hell and upset at his words but he was still Hyuuga at the end of the day. He sighed, scuffing his foot against the floor in thought.

"I deserve to be dumped." He uttered, voice cracking. "God I've been so horrible...I-I don't want to lose him Riko."

"I know." She murmured. "And I think you need to get your head sorted before it's too late."

"But what if I do it again?"

She was silent on that matter for a few moments. "Then you better hope to hell that he's a forgiving person." She said softly. "I'm gonna go and get the others sorted, you should find out where he bolted to and start thinking about how you're going to win his heart back after _that_ performance."

Her fading footsteps echoed off the cold walls. Hyuuga sighed heavily but didn't leave, I silently got to my feet as I heard his ragged breathing, he was mumbling things but I couldn't make out what they were. With a shaking hand, I unlocked the cubicle door, stepping out and meeting his gaze instantly. He was a mess, a far cry from the captain and best friend I knew with his eyes red from sobbing, body trembling and glasses clutched in his hand. Neither of us said anything, I wasn't sure what to say as my chest tightened and the lump formed in my throat. He hastily wiped his eyes and put his glasses back on, trying to regain composure as I quickly lost mine. Slowly he approached me, at first I wanted to flinch away, the ingrained paranoia gnawing away but I shoved it down and let him draw me into a cautious hug.

"I-I assume you heard everything." He whispered, voice hoarse.

"Yeah."

He buried his face in the crook of my neck, I felt fresh tears fall onto my shoulder as I dug my fingers into his back and let out a sob. We were beside ourselves, conflicted, hurt and scared. I sniffed loudly as we both sunk to the hard tiled floor, still holding onto each other in fear of letting go. He pulled back enough to catch my eye, reaching up to cup my damp cheek.

"I'm so sorry." He breathed. "Shun, I've fucked up so much."

I nodded, there was no point lying to him. "So have I."

"No, no-no you haven't. You've been perfect, you've been everything I've wanted and needed from the day we met to now." His other hand came up to hold the back of my neck, keeping my gaze fixed on him. "You've had off days yeah but that's nothing compared to how much I've fucked up today."

I shook my head slightly. "You were just trying to be a good captain and keep me in line. I-I shouldn't have taken it so personally."

"I shouldn't have assumed you were pissed at me." He held me tightly, resting his forehead against mine and exhaling. "...I'm such a terrible boyfriend."

"You're not." I blurted out. "Y-You're still adapting, getting used to it. Heck we're gonna be parents in a few months...it's gonna push us all to our limits."

A breathless chuckle left him. "You wanna know one of the things that made me fall for you? How you always try to make light of a situation. You might not notice it but we do, even if your puns are terrible and I want to throttle you over them sometimes, they make us smile when we think about them. It's the feeling behind them that gets me, you just want to make us happy."

I swallowed, watching as his eyes welled up again, I stroked his cheek as he tried to stop the tears falling.

"I don't want to lose you."

"You're not going to." I choked out, fighting my own sobs back. "You're not going to Junpei. You may be a pain in the ass but your my pain in the ass...if you know what I mean."

He chuckled through his tears. "Of course. You and your perfect timing."

I smiled weakly, he tenderly kissed me, the taste of his tears salty on my lips. He kept hold of me as we both composed ourselves, the door to the locker room opening and Kiyoshi pacing in, looking worried as he regarded us on the floor, both tear-stained and exhausted.

"...what am I going to do with you two?" He murmured, offering us both a hand to stand up.

"Love us?" I replied hopefully, taking his hand and getting to my feet.

"I think I can manage that." He hummed, giving both of us a kiss on the cheek. "I'll cook dinner tonight, you two should take it easy and--"

"Hell no." Hyuuga cut in. "You're resting when we get home, what did I tell you about pulling self-sacrificial stunts?"

I rolled my eyes and tuned out of the conversation, there was still a long way to go as far as getting used to our lives together but I had faith that we could make it work. Sure there would be more days like today when we'd piss each other off, nearly jeopardise our relationships, take unnecessary risks and question why the gods have doomed us. The truth was, even with all of those things in mind, I was prepared to weather the storms ahead because I couldn't imagine life without either of them.


	13. Successor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After the chaos of last chapter; a little bit less manic now.

 

I needed a break, Kuroko told me that I needed to get out of the apartment just for a few hours and relax a little and I couldn't agree more. I was over the drama of the Yousen match, the air had been cleared and Hyuuga had fussed over both me and Kiyoshi every day since the match. But with our next opponent only a few days away and the promise of more stress being placed on my shoulders, I decided to visit one of my friends for the day, just to get some fresh air and give Kiyoshi and Hyuuga some time alone.

"Don't worry about Shin-chan being here, he'll probably ignore you for the most part." Takao told me as he unlocked the door to his house. "Oh and my little sister is around so don't be spooked if she appears out of nowhere. She's quite shy though."

I smiled, nodding as I was invited in and led to the other point guard's bedroom. Midorima was sat on the bed with his back against the wall and attention firmly rooted to the book he was reading, Takao called a cheery greeting to him and got a nod in return. I didn't actually feel threatened by the ace, he seemed simple to get along with; as long as I didn't disturb him, he wouldn't be a problem.

"So what do you wanna do? I got some video games, we could watch TV, there's a chess set somewhere..." Takao rattled off. "Or we could just sit and chill, I don't mind. You're the one who wanted to come over."

"Yeah, I mean I told you about the Yousen match didn't I?"

He nodded, sitting on the edge of the bed and gesturing for me to join him. "Your alpha being a dick? Yeah."

"He's not that bad really. We put it all behind us now, it's just another bump in the road."

Takao shrugged. "I guess you have to, what is it now- two months til your supposed to--"

"Yeah. End of January or beginning of February." I interrupted. "It's not long."

He seemed to give me a long look. "You don't look that pregnant."

Midorima's attention strayed from the book, his eyes flicking over to us in interest. I felt a little uneasy as his gaze fixed on me but I tried to shrug it off. "I know, it's a miracle in a way, the longer I don't have a huge bump, the longer I can keep it mostly under wraps. It's a pain to explain that not only am I still playing but that both my alphas are on my team."

"I suppose. Hey have you thought more about the birthing partner thing?" Takao leaned back on his bed, resting on his elbows as he continued with the topic. "I'm happy to do it if you want."

I smiled. "I have other omegas to consider dude. There's Koganei and Kuroko who would be more used to dealing with Kiyoshi and Hyuuga when...it happens."

He nodded. "Well have you thought about maybe getting one of them to stay with your alphas, and then having two with you?"

I shrugged. "I guess that's worth considering. Anyway, can we play some video games or something? I kinda want to take my mind off it all for a bit."

Takao sat up and nodded, getting up and kneeling in front of the small TV he had hooked up to his console. I felt Midorima's gaze on me and hazarded a question to him.

"Can I help you?"

He didn't reply immediately, adjusting his glasses with his taped up hand first. "Are you taking vitamin supplements for your condition?"

"No?"

He snorted, moving to pick up a notebook, he scribbled down a list of sorts before tearing the page out and handing it to me. "These are the foods you should be eating to guarantee a healthy baby." He told me. "Especially given how little time you have left."

I took the paper and folded it up. "Uh, thanks I guess."

Takao tossed a controller into my lap as he sat between us again. "Shin-chan please don't poison him." He joked.

"Why would I want to poison him Kazunari?" Midorima sighed.

"So that you can cure him and the med school will accept you better, duh." Takao beamed, zipping through the select screen on the game we were going to be playing.

"That's called fraud baka...you're a pain Kazunari." Midorima uttered, going back to his book. "How do I put up with you?"

"Because I'm a good fuck and you can't get enough of me."

A faint trace of blush spread across Midorima's cheeks as he cleared his throat and concentrated on the pages in front of him. I couldn't help but wonder if this is how Kiyoshi saw Hyuuga and I when we bickered, Takao and I both chuckled as we focused on the game. We talked a bit about our teams, the rumours around certain players dating and such mundane things that Midorima scoffed at.

"So have any of your freshmen presented yet? Other than your aces." Takao asked, mashing buttons and making the character on screen do some crazy combo of moves.

"I think Furihata's gonna soon." I replied. "He keeps acting weird-- oh also I think he has a crush on Akashi."

Midorima's attention was caught. "Akashi-kun?" He repeated. "Your second choice point guard--"

"Yeah. He followed you guys to your little meeting remember?" I asked over my shoulder, focusing more on the game. "He seemed start-struck and now he keeps getting flustered whenever he comes up in conversation."

Takao chuckled. "That would be interesting to see, the Emperor and the peasant."

"He's not a peasant."

"He might as well be." Midorima sighed. "Look, I'll give you some advice."

I turned my full attention to him as Takao paused the game. He was as stoic as ever as he marked the page in his book and regarded me with his gaze.

"Akashi-kun is unattached, he's been with several alphas and omegas alike. As far as I know he's not gone through a heat with any of them, preferring to sort it out himself. If your freshman is serious about trying to earn his affection then I strongly urge you to keep an eye on him, Akashi is ruthless in courting."

"Ruthless how?"

"He expects perfection. From what I can tell, anything short of perfect isn't good enough for him. He may have changed his way since Teikou but I doubt it."

I nodded, Furihata seemed the opposite of what Akashi desired but this was one of his rivals talking, a rival who had gone through middle school with him and had once considered him a friend. I couldn't be sure of the truth in Midorima's words but took them on board anyway. The afternoon passed quite quickly after that, the sun began to set and I figured that I should get home before it got too dark. Takao insisted that him and Midorima walked me home, not wanting me to be an easy target.

"So you're facing sock-senpai right?" He asked as we waited for the train.

"I don't think he'd appreciate being called that." I remarked. "Kasamatsu doesn't seem like the type to like nicknames."

Takao laughed. "He's saved in my phone as that."

"How the hell did you get his number?" I asked, as Midorima seemed put out.

"Relax Shin-chan, he's already got an omega." Takao assured his ace before turning back to me. "I ran into him and suggested that the three of us should get together as point guards once the winter cup is over, he gave me his number so I can organise it all. It's nothing special."

I nodded, in theory it seemed like a nice idea. The trip back to Kagami's was eventless, Takao babbling on about this and that, Midorima silently walking with us until we got to the building.

"I'll stay here." He stated. "I don't particularly want to encounter three alphas."

I smiled and led Takao to the apartment, Kiyoshi smiled as he opened the door for me, nodding to Takao and asking if he wanted to come in. The other point guard declined, explaining that Midorima was waiting for him, wishing us good luck on our match against Kaijou before leaving.

"Good day?" Kiyoshi asked as he presented me with coffee jelly, my face lit up at the sight of my favourite dessert.

"Yeah, it was pretty cool." I told him, eagerly tucking into the treat. "Where's Junpei?"

Kiyoshi raised an eyebrow. "He's...busy. Give him a few minutes."

I was suspicious but knowing the centre, he wouldn't give anything away. Kagami and Kuroko were already in their room it seemed, I wasn't about to interrupt them although I did notice that Kagami's ring was on the kitchen counter with the chain nearly coiled next to it. Kiyoshi followed my gaze and chuckled slightly.

"Tetsuya was supposed to throw it away." He explained. "But he refused on the account that just because Taiga and Himuro are no longer brothers, it doesn't mean that Taiga should throw away the memories they have. You should've seen his face when Taiga heard that theory, I thought he was going to burst into tears. They ended up in the bedroom shortly after, the lack of noise makes me think they're having a more...intimate moment."

I smiled, feeling my heart ache at the sentiment, I let him take the empty plate away and watched as he disappeared into the bedroom. He returned a few seconds later and hugged me from behind, kissing my neck and inhaling deeply. I leaned into his hold and made a small noise of curiosity, he chuckled and led me by the hand to the bedroom. The first thing I noticed was that the lights were off, the second was that there were candles everywhere.

"What is this?" I asked, the door closing behind me.

"Junpei still feels terrible." Kiyoshi whispered. "So he wants to make it up to you."

I had my suspicions but sat on the bed anyway, I never really pegged Hyuuga to be overly romantic so this was a somewhat strange situation to be in, especially as they both had an entire day to organise something. The bed dipped slightly and two hands covered my eyes, I bit my lip slightly as I felt lips press against my neck, tender and slow.

"Lean back." Hyuuga whispered. "I got you, don't worry."

With a nod I leaned back into his hold, his hands moved from my eyes and gently coaxed me to shuffle back on the bed. He was shirtless but that seemed to be more to do with the fact he had just showered than anything else, nuzzling my neck as he held me tightly. I was curious as to where this was headed as he took my hands in his and sighed.

"I just wanted to apologise again." He murmured. "For being out of line, there's no excuse for it really and I know that. I just want you to know that I'm willing to do anything to anything to make it up to you."

"Junpei..." I breathed. "I'm over it already, you just had an off day."

"It's happened before and I don't want it to happen again." He replied, reaching out a hand to Kiyoshi and beckoning the other over. "And I wanted to get you something to prove how much I value you, how much I love you."

I watched as Kiyoshi handed him a small box, he opened it in front of me to reveal a chain with a small silver disc, engraved on the disk were the four corners of a compass. I swallowed as he kissed my neck and eased it out of the padding.

"What does it mean?" I asked, a compass seemed like a strange thing to have engraved.

"Well I think of you like a compass in my life, always pointing me in the right direction." He hummed.

"Your point guard _pointing_ you in the right direction huh." I remarked, he snorted and shook his head slightly.

"I'm trying to be sweet here and say I'm lost without you."

"Or lost with me, I know you can't read a compass."

Kiyoshi laughed as Hyuuga sighed heavily. "You've been hanging out with Takao again haven't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." I retorted with a smile.

He chuckled and got me to sit up slightly so he could place the chain around my neck, it sat quite comfortably on my collarbone, just low enough that it would be hidden by my jersey whilst on the court. It was a simple gift and most people would think little of it, but as I toyed with the disc I felt it was much more important than that, it was a token of love but it was also acting as a seal to an unspoken promise; he wanted to promise that he'd never hurt me like that again.

"I love you Shun." He spoke. "And I'm sorry that I'm finding it hard to control myself--"

I pressed a finger to his lips. "You've said it enough." I murmured, turning around in his hold to look at him. "I know Junpei, you're only human after all."

Kiyoshi joined us on the bed, pressing a kiss to both our cheeks. "So are we all okay now?" He asked. "Anything else that needs to be said before I demand we get some rest?"

"I love you both." I whispered. "Even with your unpredictable instincts and tendencies to get worked up...you're both great. I-I wouldn't have it any other way."

They both smiled, Hyuuga hugged me tightly and nuzzled my neck as Kiyoshi ruffled my hair. It seemed that we be going into our match against Kaijou with cleared air between us.

 

\---

 

I made sure to actually take the hormone tablets that day, I had neglected them since I thought I could handle my emotions during a match but our quarter-final match had proven quite the opposite. If we won this match then we'd go to the final where it would be an all-out battle for victory, I had to keep my head screwed on this game and ignore who I was going up against. This was the benefit of not being super close to Kasamatsu. I admired him as my senior and his commitment to the sport, remembering his loss last year and how he was prepared to give up all together until he was made captain for his efforts. He reminded me a lot of Hyuuga in that aspect but he was a lot harder to read in the heat of the moment.

Both teams were pumped up, Kaijou was one of our old rivals and we had beaten them in the past. However, Hyuuga was quick to remind us that the practice match was a long time ago for both teams, that we had all improved our strengths drastically since then so the fact was, we really didn't have an advantage over them because of that alone. Kagami was wearing his ring again and was toying with it as we got given our instructions, likewise I found myself fiddling with my own chain hanging around my neck.

"Don't underestimate them." Riko declared. "Make a statement when you get out there."

We took a few seconds once getting into the arena to have a team huddle, most of the time they were excitable and full of smiles but today it was calm, collected and oozing with confidence. As we broke away from it with our trademark cheer, Hyuuga caught me and kissed my forehead, one of the only times we had displayed such affection leading up to a match.

"Look after yourself." He told me.

"You too." I replied. "Don't get too worked up."

He nodded. "I'll do my best."

We parted, I watched as he went and shook Kasamatsu's hand, two captains fighting to bring their team victory and glory. I was lost in thought for a second before feeling a tap on my shoulder.

"It's been a while." He spoke softly as I smiled at him. "I saw your encounter with Imayoshi."

"Hey Mori." I greeted the shooting guard, the sole reason I wasn't a quivering wreck at the hands of the Touou third year. "He's still beaten up about it..."

"I bet." He remarked. "I hear you've not only got two alphas but you're also expecting." His words and demeanour were calm and collected but I traced the dimness in his eyes.

I felt a little bad but it couldn't be helped, him and I were never meant to be. "My first heat was a little hectic..."

He chuckled slightly, hand coming up and ruffling my hair endearingly. "I'm glad you've moved on from him, it makes it all a little easier to stomach."

The referee called for both teams to line up, cutting our reunion short. Once formalities were out of the way the match started, we followed orders to go full out from the start, passing to Kuroko and him immediately using his phantom shot to score. Our lead was short lived as we felt Kise's presence on the field, he was already utilising his perfect copy and mimicked Midorima's full-court shot within seconds. I came up against Kasamatsu when I got possession, I felt no difference between us as I analysed the situation.

"Nice to see you." I smiled, spying Kiyoshi under the basket.

"I trust you're doing well." He replied politely, his mind elsewhere.

"I'll be doing better after this match." I declared, trusting that Kuroko would redirect the pass to Kiyoshi as I flicked the ball out of my hands. True to his nature, Kuroko redirected the pass to Kiyoshi who attempted to score but was halted by Kobori, he passed it to Hyuuga in hope of a three-pointer. Kise made another appearance, this time borrowing Murasakibara's blocking technique.

I cussed as Kise started an offensive play, he was really giving it his all as he evaded Kiyoshi's attempt to block him and squared up to Kagami. Of all the miracles we'd faced, the next technique Kise borrowed was one only Kuroko had seen before. Kagami found himself on the floor as Kise scored, I was stunned by the display of dominance by the miracle, defying the mark on his neck as Kagami tried to make sense of what just happened.

"Akashi-kun's Emperor eye." Kuroko explained as we took a time-out, we were now thirteen points down thanks to Kise's perfect copying. "It's unstoppable."

"Oh great." Koganei sighed.

"He's setting the pace too quick for most of you." Riko concluded. "You've all missed shots because you're being pressured into it so we're gonna change our strategy." She turned to Furihata. "You're subbing in for Izuki."

My eyes widened, I was being subbed out? "Coach, why me?"

She smiled, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Your speciality is reading plays and making decisions, however Kise is making everything too quick for you to get a good grasp on their style. I'm putting Furihata in so he slows the rate of play, a fresh set of eyes as it were. You'll be back in once I feel your skills will be suited for the task."

Furihata was shaking like a leaf. I couldn't argue with Riko's logic, I had been overwhelmed by Kasamatsu's speed as well as the rate that Kise copied his former team-mate's styles, so maybe sitting out would give me some time to analyse their play and come back with a plan. As the rest of them walked back out, I caught Furihata's shoulder.

"You'll do great." I told him. "We believe in you Furi."

He smiled, exhaling heavily as he jogged out to meet the rest of them. I took my place next to Koganei on the bench and watched in anticipation, it had been a while since I was on the bench during a game, so used to being on court for the full match regardless of the situation. Watching him face off against Kasamatsu was interesting, he was of course no match for the seasoned player but he was having an effect on the state of play, he was clumsy and it made for several tense moments between passes.

"You think he's got what it takes to be a regular point guard?" Koganei asked as we gained possession due to Furihata's well-read play.

"Definitely." I replied. "I think you'll be in good hands."

He wrapped an arm around my shoulder as we cheered with the other benched players. I was actually impressed with how well Furihata was doing, fully trusting his player instincts, passing to and from Kagami and Hyuuga without shaking _too_ much, what was most noticeable was how easily he trusted Kuroko to polish up his sloppy passes, which led to us scoring and clawing back some of the lost points as the clock ran down and the first quarter ended.

"D-Did I do okay?" He asked as he returned to the bench and got high-fived by everyone.

"You did better than okay." I smiled. "I might have to step up my game if I hope to stay on the starting line-up."

He beamed, shaking from the adrenaline of the match as Kagami ruffled his hair and Kuroko gave him a reassuring pat on the back. Riko told me I'd start in the second quarter and that I was to focus on getting the ball to Kiyoshi, I nodded but was only half paying attention as I watched Fukuda and Kawahara congratulate Furihata on his Winter cup début. Something about leaving the team's point guard position in his hands after this tournament made me feel at ease, he was more than capable of succeeding me once he got over his fear of failure, and I believed he'd be the underdog during inter-high if I wasn't back by then.

"And this is why you'd be a good pack mother." Kiyoshi whispered in my ear, catching me off guard.

"What?"

"The way you encourage the freshmen, taking the time to boost their confidence and egos." He reasoned. "You're a natural."

I scoffed and playfully shoved him. "Mama-Kiyoshi sounds better though."

 


	14. Sock-Senpai

  
"You know, Takao calls you 'sock-senpai'." I remarked as Kasamatsu and I faced each other, he seemed more than a little irritated by the remark.

"Brat." He sighed, drippling the ball as he tried to read my movements. "When I next see him--"

"You'll teach him some respect?"

He scowled at me. "You need to learn some too by the sound of things."

He moved past me quickly and went on to score, I expected that he'd be too fast for me to catch at first but that was just part of the plan, I had to watch and try to predict his movements for my new move to work. Kiyoshi patted my shoulder reassuringly as we moved to restart, the ball was thrown in and we supposedly had possession until Moriyama stole it and passed to his captain.

"We meet again." Kasamatsu uttered, not really giving me time to respond as he moved to drive past me again. I had predicted he'd go right again, using my eagle eye I drove my arm backwards and knocked the ball out of his hand. He gasped slightly as Kuroko intercepted the ball and directed it to Hyuuga who went one to score a three-pointer.

"Nice one." Hyuuga told me, ruffling my hair. "I guess that training paid off."

I nodded, exhaling as we watched Kiyoshi defend our basket and launch the ball to Kagami. Kise was tasked with marking him it seemed as our ace paused for a moment to get his bearings, they seemed to have a short exchange before Kagami drove past him, coming up against Kasamatsu who managed to steal the ball away. I quickly moved to stop him progressing up the court before it was too late, he didn't say anything to me as he quickly made a decision to pass the ball to Kise. The blond caught the ball with ease and used his perfect copy to mimic Kagami's full speed drive, our own ace just managing to block the shot in time and sending the ball hurtling down the court for Hyuuga to score.

Kuroko paused next to me, I wasn't sure how he was reacting to Kise's skills but he didn't seem defeated just yet. He shot me a smile as the two aces met once again, this time they barely stopped and broke into a high speed exchange, I gathered Kise had adopted Aomine's velocity and was giving Kagami a run for his money, defending much like Murasakibara as he neared our basket again. I noted Kasamatsu was unmarked, not really anticipating Kise passing now but still paranoid, I joined the rival captain.

"Sock-senpai though." He uttered, focusing his gaze on the duelling aces. "That brat is gonna get my boot up his ass."

"Midorima might have something to say about you roughing up his omega."

Kasamatsu snorted. "Please, Kise tells me that Midorima is the least confrontational of them."

Kagami batted the ball away, Kuroko setting up for a phantom shot against Hayakawa as the ball flew down the court, but that wasn't what Kasamatsu was watching, Kise seemed to be having trouble with his leg and the captain wasn't about to let him continue. He marched over, calling the referee for a time out as he did. I heard the words 'career ruining' and 'because I love you' as he hissed at the ace.

"But Yukio--"

"I'm your captain on this court." Kasamatsu replied. "And right now I'm telling you to sub out before you cause yourself more damage." His voice softened slightly as he continued, taking Kise's face gently in his hands as the other panted. "Please Ryouta, just do this for me yeah? We can handle them until you're back."

With a sigh and hastily wiping at his eyes, Kise nodded and made his way off court, his replacement wasn't any less of a threat as Hyuuga appeared next to me.

"Oh great, Nakamura." He uttered. "He's in the top eight nationally for defence. That should prove difficult to deal with."

I shrugged. "Well at least Kise is off the court..." I trailed off, feeling slightly bad for saying it. As much as I felt bad for Kise, I really felt for Kasamatsu. He was telling his ace to leave because he didn't want to cause him to potentially ruin his future by playing on an injured leg, he was also telling his partner - judging by the words I overheard - to back down. He knew that subbing Kise out could cost them this match and his last chance at the Winter cup but he was putting others before himself, again.

"Snap out of it." Hyuuga murmured, placing a hand on my shoulder. "I know you're probably feeling guilty but this is the reality of basketball."

I nodded, running a hand through my hair as we set up to restart. I had to get myself back into the game, focus my eagle eye and prepare to face our opponents head on again. Kagami got double teamed immediately, defaulting to passing back to our captain who I expected to shoot from the outside again but to my surprise he passed to Kuroko who scored with his phantom shot. It was almost too perfect.

Kaijou hit back though, Hayakawa missing a rebound but it being redeemed by Moriyama's three-pointer. I caught the shooter's eye before nodding in approval, even if we were rivals, I could appreciate a good play when I saw it. When I got the ball thrown to me I felt a little confused, Kasamatsu was stood rather far away and I was too far back from the basket to make a reliable shot, Kagami and Kiyoshi were too tightly marked for me to justify passing so the last resort was Kuroko. I didn't think much of it when he set up for another phantom shot, but when I saw how the rival captain was marking I realised that he had figured it out.

The ball was knocked back, Kobori quickly swiping it up and making off down the court, I collected my thoughts and tore after him, succeeding in catching up to block the shot and hand possession to Kagami. Our ace was pumped up at seeing his shadow's move so easily deflected and broke through the defence to slam the ball into the basket. In the aftermath of his scoring, Moriyama regrouped and took the lead again with a three-pointer, Hyuuga responded by firing the ball down to Kiyoshi to score again just as the quarter ended, both teams at 44 points.

"Good work guys." Riko told us. "You had me worried for a second there but you pulled it back."

"So I guess Mitobe's in now that Kuroko's phantom shot is useless?" Hyuuga asked, accepting the water bottle from Fukuda.

"Yes, until the last quarter Kuroko will be benched."

The shadow nodded, accepting his fate. He smiled at Kagami as we quickly reminded ourselves of the plan; to get at least fifteen points ahead of Kaijou as soon as possible so that if Kise came back on, there would be no way he'd be able to break our lead. Again, I felt slightly guilty but as Hyuuga said, it was the reality of basketball. We took note that Kise was indeed benched like we hoped, as I took up my mark against Kasamatsu I felt I should apologise for the circumstances but it was neither the time nor the place.

Each team vied for points in the opening plays, neither side being merciful with their blocking. We were starting to pull away though as Kasamatsu gained the ball, I immediately focused on his movements, he was faster than before so I was only able to tap the ball slightly and cause him to lose control enough to hastily pass to Kobori, thankfully for us Kiyoshi stopped the first attempt to score only to fall foul a few seconds later. The shrill blast of the whistle confirmed my fears as Kobori made a remark that Kiyoshi could only gawk at.

"And why didn't you respond?" Hyuuga asked, irritation rolling off him, Kagami drew up next to me panting as we watched the two alphas argue.

"What was I supposed to say?" Kiyoshi replied, wiping his forehead. "Revenge doesn't pay? Wow that sounds so intimidating Junpei."

"You know what I meant!" Hyuuga snapped. "You don't just let them trash talk you." He stalked off, I sighed heavily and asked Kagami why he looked so confused.

"Are they okay?" He uttered as Kiyoshi walked in the opposite direction.

I nodded, this was normal for them. Hyuuga doesn't deal with stress very well and Kiyoshi's too gentle for his own good sometimes, when the two of them get thrown into a game like this it was natural for them to disagree a lot. They were the driving force behind the team when it was founded, and like two rival alphas vying for leadership of a pack, they were quick to criticise each other if the conditions called for it. Kobori scored the penalty, a one point difference separated us. I got the ball and immediately started down the court, passing to Hyuuga who sent it to Mitobe, the silent player tried his hook shot but Nakamura deflected it, Kiyoshi's renewed determination came into play as he caught the rebound and dunked the ball.

Despite their disagreement, the two alphas managed to orchestrate their plays to compliment each other, Kagami and I feeding the ball to either of them and ultimately setting it up to score. Our lead was growing little by little and Kagami finally seemed convinced that they were working together despite their differences. He felt more confident as our teamwork came into play and gave him the opportunity to dunk the ball right before the end of the quarter.

"Kise will be subbed back in at some point." Kuroko stated as we took one final breather. "Most likely towards the end of the quarter and he'll be desperate to win."

"Tell us something we don't know." Kiyoshi smiled, sweat was pouring off all of us, the pace had ramped up again as Kaijou became desperate but there was something else at play.

"...Rakuzan have been watching." Kagami murmured, I followed his gaze to the bleachers, they weren't hard to miss with their overwhelming presence. Furihata started murmuring beside me about how uneasy he felt suddenly, Midorima's words echoed in my mind about Akashi demanding perfection. That could wait until later, we had to forget about the crowd and focus on winning.

"Right. Come on then." Hyuuga declared standing up. "Let's put this game to bed."

I rose to my feet and sighed, I felt hot and my blood was singing as we restarted. The first few plays were scrappy, Kaijou really were getting desperate and I could hear the fear in Kasamatsu's voice even if he wasn't outwardly showing it. I started to call out orders, surprising Hyuuga at my sudden will to take command of the situation. There was more at stake here than one match after all.

The rival captain and I faced off again. I sensed his urgency as I swerved around him and passed to Kagami. "You know what I said to Kise last night?" He suddenly asked, concluding that Kagami was too far away to chase.

"What?" I panted.

"That it's the ace's job to lead the team to victory, but it's the captain's job to bear responsibility if they lose." He smiled weakly. "Kise may be out of commission but I don't intend to carry that responsibility just yet." He was gone, tearing off and calling out for the ball, he had distracted me with his reminiscing and now I wasn't near enough to use the eagle spear. I could've kicked myself. Kiyoshi managed to deflect the shot, only barely, the ball had no-one to go to though and it looked like it was going to bounce out of play, I wasn't fast enough to catch it.

"Oh no you don't!" A call came from beside me, Hyuuga sprinted forward, pretty much throwing himself at the ball and batting it back into play.

His momentum got the better of him though as he barrelled off the court and fell to the floor. Mitobe caught the ball as I called out to my lover, he rose to his feet, legs shaking slightly and lip split open but he was okay. I received the ball and decided to get my own chase on, determined not to waste his efforts. Kagami was right next to the net as I got past Nakamura and set up an alley-oop for our ace. Mitobe ruffled my hair in congratulations as I panted, this match felt more difficult to keep up with.

"Are you okay?" Hyuuga asked. "You've been lagging behind a lot."

I swallowed, throat dry. "Me? What about you?" I reached up and tenderly dabbed at the blood. He used his jersey to wipe most of it away and gave me a smile.

"I'm okay Shun. It's just a cut."

I rolled my eyes. "And you lecture Teppei on pulling stunts like that."

Four minutes remained. I just had to last four more minutes and then it was over. Why was I counting down the minutes? I didn't normally do that so much. Kuroko subbed in for Mitobe, Kise was also back on the court for one final showdown, even if Kasamatsu forbid him to. I shook that last thought from my mind as we got set for one final play, I fixed my eyes on Kasamatsu's as he got the ball from Nakamura, he was tired and he was already accepting his team's fate but there was still a spark of life in him. He passed to Kise, the final pass of the match. Kagami faced off against him, Kise's final act as Kaijou ace this match was to fully utilise his perfect copy; Akashi's Emperor eye combined with Aomine's full speed drive to get past Kagami. He then leapt up and overpowered Kiyoshi to dunk the ball.

The fifteen point difference was too much for Kaijou. We won, Kise's last play was more for psychological benefit. We got the post-match formalities out of the way, as the rest of the team started heading back I managed to grab Moriyama before Kaijou also left.

"So I guess that's it then." I murmured. "You're graduating before Inter-high...so that'll be the last we play against you and Kasa."

Moriyama smiled, he was near tears but he smiled anyway. "You guys played well. We just...couldn't match it."

I extended my hand, he took it and shook it firmly with both of his. "Thanks again, for stepping in with the Imayoshi incident last year. I-I don't know what would've happened if you hadn't had shown up in time."

He nodded. "Alphas like him are the reason I look up to my captain, they're complete opposites in how they treat others."

I glanced over at the captain of Kaijou. Kise was barely keeping it together and Kasamatsu had gotten him in a tight embrace, letting the blond cry into his shoulder. A new wave of guilt washed over me but a hand on my shoulder snapped me out of it.

"Don't feel bad Shun. We knew this was our last year to try and win, we're just glad we actually had a fighting chance for a while." Moriyama told me. "Rakuzan will be ruthless and even if Kise had survived this match, I doubt he would've been much of a match for his former captain."

"Rakuzan? So the Shuutoku match ended in a loss for Takao?"

Moriyama nodded. "No surprise really."

I put that thought away for another time. "Well, in any case." I shrugged, smiling at him. "Good luck with your final exams Yoshitaka."

"Good luck with the final, and your new family." He murmured. "You and I both know I envy your alphas a lot but I'm truly happy for you."

"You should visit when you've graduated." I remarked. "Bring Kasa along too."

He laughed. "Kasa around kids?"

I laughed too, hearing his point and shaking his hand once more before we parted ways. I found Kiyoshi waiting for me in the tunnel to the changing rooms.

"You and him have some kind of his--"

"I'll tell you both when all this Winter cup chaos is over." I told him. "I promise Teppei. I just don't want you two worrying over it all now."

He sighed. "I'll hold you to it Shun."

"I know." I replied, craning up and kissing his cheek.

Once the adrenaline from the victory faded, the exhaustion really set in. I was sat on the bench waiting for the rest of the team to finish getting changed, there had been celebrations for a while before any of us even thought about getting out of our sweaty kit, when I felt my eyes slip shut. It was almost out of my control, my body just gave up trying to stay awake now that it deemed that it wasn't vital to. I became aware of the hush in the voices, a few offhand comments about 'he's completely worn out' and 'must've taken a big toll on him' but none that warranted me opening my eyes.

I was scooped up effortlessly, I guessed by Kiyoshi, I buried my face in his jacket and confirmed it with his scent as he carried me out of the changing room. I didn't care if we were getting strange looks, we were in the final now anyway and most, if not all, of the other teams knew about my condition thanks to Imayoshi and Hanamiya.

"He's really that out of it huh?" Koganei murmured.

"It's probably due to his eagle spear." Hyuuga replied. "Like Kuroko's misdirection, it takes a toll on the body and the mind. That and this was the first time he had to use it."

"He'll be fine." Kiyoshi uttered, holding me a little tighter. "We'll get him home and let him rest properly."

I nuzzled his chest, feeling the low rumble of a chuckle before I really did fall asleep. The next thing I knew we were getting into the apartment, I had slept through the entire journey home and I was in Hyuuga's arms as I stirred.

"Don't." He whispered, laying me down on the bed. "You can rest babe."

"I don't wanna..." I mumbled, rubbing my eyes, they hurt a bit actually now that I paused to think about it.

He smiled. "We just carried you all the way home, blew off the rest of the team heading to Maji burger, and now you say you don't wanna sleep?" He chuckled. "You're something else."

I nodded, sitting up and shrugging of my jacket. "Cuddle me." I demanded quietly, pulling his arm as I led back down.

He sighed, taking off his own jacket and tossing it to one side before joining me, he pressed soft kisses to the back of my neck and shoulders as he wrapped his arms around me. Despite my previous denial, I slipped into a dreamless sleep once more.

 

\---

 

"Shun..." A soft voice called, fingers grazing my cheek. "Shun babe wake up."

I scrunched up my nose, willing my eyes open to find out who was calling me. Kiyoshi smiled warmly as my vision focused and I made a small noise of irritation at being woken up.

"It's nearly nine, you haven't eaten since lunchtime." He told me, finding my hand and giving it a squeeze. "Do you want anything in particular? Taiga's prepared to cook anything."

I thought for a moment. "...salmon."

He raised an eyebrow. "Salmon?"

I nodded. "...if that's okay? I-I mean any fish will do but I kinda want salmon more."

He chuckled. "I'll tell Taiga, I don't know if there are any store's close by." He kissed my hand before rolling off the bed, I sighed and leaned back into Hyuuga's hold, he was somewhat awake but seemed ready to fall back to sleep any second.

"I love you." He murmured.

"I love you too."

I managed to stay awake long enough for Kiyoshi to return and tell me that Kagami was working on getting me something to eat. After a few moments of debating, I decided that I ought to get up at least, even if it was only for half an hour whilst I ate, joining Kuroko on the couch as Kagami bustled about in the kitchen. The shadow smiled and let me lean into his hold, I was still tired but Kiyoshi was right about me needing to eat.

"You played well." Kuroko told me, carding fingers through my hair as I shuffled to rest my head in his lap.

"So did you." I replied. "I didn't expect Kasa to figure out your phantom shot though."

"It was going to happen eventually." He sighed, fingers gently trailing down my back. "If not then it would've happened against Akashi-kun."

I nodded, not really interested in talking about the next match just yet. My phone buzzed on the table, I lazily checked the messages that had been flooding in, most from my family and our classmates congratulating us on getting to the final.

_[Hawkeye]:Why did you tell sock-senpai about my nickname for him ;_; Also he said something about telling you that he wasn't upset about the result of the match and to wish you luck in the final._  
  
_Just give him my number already -.- But yeah, sorry to hear about your loss..._  
  
_[Hawkeye]: Don't worry about it! Just go and beat Rakuzan for us :3_

Kuroko smiled at the change between me and Takao, I remarked about how Takao and I had grown closer after our first match, we had kept tabs on each other over the summer and our friendship grew quickly. He said it was nice that we didn't let our rivalry ruin our friendship, I sensed that he was referring to how him and the other miracles had grown apart. I knew he still received texts from Kise a lot and Momoi was forever leaving messages for him to find, but the other four hardly got in contact.

"It's more that we can never let our guard down around each other, our last two years at Teikou ingrained a deep distrust in most of them. Although Kise-kun and I are the two who it didn't seem to affect as much."

"You think it has anything to do with you two being the omegas?"

He was silent for a few moments. "You could say that. Aomine-kun was the first to present as alpha but Akashi-kun was more terrifying when it came to the process..." He trailed off, I didn't push the subject but he continued anyway. "He didn't exactly accept failure from us. If he thought we were slacking off then he'd make sure we knew it by any means necessary and the fact he was dealing with three other alphas - although Midorima-kun hadn't presented at that time - only heightened the conflict."

"You think it'll ever go back to how it was?"

Kuroko shrugged. "Akashi-kun's the one who caused it, I tried to get him to see the error of his ways but he wouldn't listen. I guess the only way he'd ever see it is if he was beaten...possibly."

I sat up, catching his sombre expression as he stared at the table where his phone was buzzing. "So I guess we have more of a reason to win then."

"Why?" He continued to ignore the phone.

"To get the miracles back on good terms with each other."

He shook his head. "I doubt we can fix the wounds suffered."

"We can try."

This was a strange conversation to be having, usually it was Kuroko who was the one encouraging us to look for the best in a situation, to believe that we can change things but he seemed to have a bit of a defeatist attitude surrounding reversing Akashi's actions.

"Have you told Taiga?"

He nodded. "He pretty much said what you did. I'm just not sure if beating Akashi-kun will be enough."

Our conversation was cut short by Kagami presenting me with a bowl, I nodded in thanks and inhaled the wonderful aroma of cooked salmon before starting to pick at the rice. Kuroko let Kagami draw him into a hug as he sat down, the phone on the table still buzzing occasionally. Kiyoshi ruffled my hair as I ate, I wasn't actually aware of how hungry I was until I finished and sat back with a content sigh.

"See? Was that so hard?" Kiyoshi remarked, ruffling my hair again.

"Shhh..." I murmured. "Where's Junpei?"

"Still asleep." Kagami chuckled, stroking Kuroko's back. "I just checked."

"We should probably all get some sleep. Riko wants us to meet at lunchtime to start analysing Rakuzan's play style." Kiyoshi told us all. "That, and we're all pretty exhausted after that match."

We all agreed that it was a good idea, I smiled as I walked into the bedroom and found Hyuuga still sleeping in his clothes where I had left him. Kiyoshi rolled his eyes slightly as I got changed, slipping on his old jersey which was pretty much what I slept in most nights, he tried to wake our lover up but Hyuuga just let out a small grumble. I fought back a chuckle as it fell to Kiyoshi to ease the other out of his clothes, I took his glasses off and carefully laid them on the bedside table. It was remarkable how he didn't wake up, he must've been completely drained.

I settled next to him, gently pulling his arm over me as Kiyoshi tugged the blankets up over us. Just before he turned out the light I drew him in for a soft kiss, letting my body surrender to sleep again as we were plunged into darkness.

"I love you Teppei." I breathed.

"I love you too Shun." He whispered in reply.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and now I get to go and work out how to write the entire Rakuzan match out in just over one chapter.


	15. Fatal Mistake

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So stuff happens and I'm already halfway through writing the next chapter.

 

I buried my face in the pillow, Hyuuga chuckled lightly as he ran a hand down my back, fingers toying with the fastener on the bra. I groaned as I shifted my weight so I wasn't lying directly on my chest, the morning light flooded into the room from the window, the glass frosting up as the bitter chill was kept outside and the apartment remained toasty.

"It's not that bad Shun." He remarked, getting the clips separated and pushing the material aside, leaning down and kissing my back.

"They're growing Junpei." I whined. "I don't like it."

"Think of them as extra pillows."

"I don't wanna!"

Kiyoshi had gone out to collect some things from my home, also to keep my family informed with how everything was _totally_ running smoothly and I was _completely_ fine with my body changing this much. Kagami and Kuroko were also out, I believe they were meeting Himuro for some reconciliation before our match tomorrow, leaving Hyuuga at home with me whilst I had a meltdown regarding the size of my developing chest.

"Do you want me to call Riko?" He asked. "She'll probably be better at comforting you than me."

I shook my head, the less people that saw me like this, the better. He left a trail of kisses up my back before pecking my cheek, I turned my head enough to look at him and smiled slightly. Slowly, I rolled over and coaxed him to lean over me and softly kiss me as I carded my hands through his hair.

"You're more than enough." I told him. "Both you and Teppei are."

He smiled, pulling away from me as he sighed. "I'm glad to hear that."

"Junpei?"

"Hm?"

"Do you think we'll win?" I asked, sitting up and slipping the bra off fully before pulling a loose shirt on instead. "Against Rakuzan."

He glanced out the window, deep in thought for a few moments before he took my hands in his. "I'd like to think so. We've beaten everyone else to get this far, I want this year to end on a high so much."

"It'll be the last time I play until after the baby's born."

"I know." He squeezed my hands. "So I want it to be a good match..."

"Also Riko will make us stand on the roof of the school and confess--"

He shook his head. "Nah she won't...I hope."

We both laughed, Kiyoshi arrived home not too long after we got up. He had stopped by Maji burger and bought us back some food, at first I got a half-hearted lecture about eating junk food but they quickly dropped the subject when I pointed out that eating this would be better than eating nothing. We had just finished eating when Kagami and Kuroko returned, the ace looking rather relaxed and happy.

"Cleared everything with Himuro?" Kiyoshi asked as we all sat in the lounge, I curled up in his hold as the wind howled outside.

"Yeah, we ran into Aomine too." Kagami replied, he was wearing the ring again and running the chain through his fingers. "I thought he was going to get in my face but he actually gave us some advice concerning Akashi."

That surprised me, I exchanged a glance with Kuroko who shrugged slightly.

"Yeah?" Hyuuga hummed. "What was it?"

"Well he said that Akashi's a tyrant, oh and that Midorima's never won a shogi or chess match against him."

"Which is true." Kuroko added. "Akashi-kun's a strategist. He will not be easy to beat."

There wasn't anything to say in response to that, none of us were under the illusion that Rakuzan would be easy to defeat but we had to believe in ourselves nonetheless. As well as dealing with Akashi, there were three Uncrowned Kings to contend with, former team-mates of Kiyoshi who wouldn't roll over as easily as we'd like them to. At this point, it was all or nothing for us, just getting to the final of the Winter cup was an achievement that we never thought we'd get, to win was another mountain to climb entirely.

"All we can do is go out there tomorrow and try our best." Kiyoshi sighed. "We made it this far by working as a team and a load of dumb luck, the least we can do is step onto that court tomorrow with our heads held high and give it everything we've got."

"And I thought I was meant to be the captain here." Hyuuga remarked.

I giggled. "You're better at inspiring us in the heat of the moment."

He rolled his eyes and playfully poked my forehead. "I'll remind you of that remark when you next complain about my speeches."

"Well you need to make them at the right time, halfway through a quarter when I'm trying to shoot isn't the right time for a four minute lecture."

"That was one time!"

Kiyoshi and Kagami laughed, we sat there exchanging remarks about Hyuuga's poor timing, I was thankful that the ace had been so accommodating for us, he could've easily told us he wasn't prepared to have us stay with him. According to Kuroko, it had taken a lot of debating the pros and cons before Kagami had agreed to let us stay. It was unclear if he was willing to let us stay after the birth but I figured that Kiyoshi and Hyuuga would handle that, they had told me they would anyway. Either way, it was just another thing to add to the list of 'things I was refusing to think about until after Christmas', the list that was already several items long. 

The afternoon faded away into evening. Riko called to tell us what time she wanted all of us to meet up in the morning, to get a good night’s sleep and eat a good breakfast, Hyuuga told her that she should take care of herself too as she's also a vital part of the team as our coach. We overheard her slightly flustered response that was somewhere along the lines of _Don't go all father-like on me Junpei, save that for your child._ which Kiyoshi couldn't help but laugh at. As much as our nerves and excitement would try to keep us up, we took Riko's advice on board and made our way to bed.

"So they grew again did they?" Kiyoshi murmured as I lay facing him, his thumb gently rubbing against the delicate skin as he held one of my breasts in his large hand. I blushed and tried to look anywhere but there as he tenderly squeezed, it was a weird sensation to have them let alone have someone touching them.

"Y-Yeah." I uttered. "I don't like them."

He smiled, leaning down and pressing his lips between the two breasts, my breathing hitched as he glanced up at me, thumb still rubbing in gentle circles.

"Give them a chance." He whispered. "Or at least give us a chance to help you get used to them."

I cleared my throat, belatedly nodding as he slowly pulled his hand away. He wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me closer to him, he waited for Hyuuga to finish his shower before starting to pepper my neck with kisses. Our captain smiled as he joined us, hand reaching around and playfully squeezing one of my breasts, I mumbled into Kiyoshi's chest about not being a squeaky toy so they should stop squeezing me.

"We know." Hyuuga whispered. "If you really don't want us to then tell us."

"It's not that, it's just weird as hell."

Kiyoshi kissed my cheek, swatting Hyuuga's hand away from my chest and linking their fingers together instead. I hummed as I felt Hyuuga lean over me, the soft breaths from both of them as they kissed made me giggle slightly. Hyuuga nuzzled my neck as he settled back down, sighing heavily as he started falling asleep, Kiyoshi's hands trailed down my back as he quietly hummed, lulling me to sleep slowly.

 

\---

 

"I feel sick." Furihata told me as we waited for the rest of the team to arrive outside the sports complex. "Oh god what if--"

"Hey, it's okay." I replied, taking him gently by the shoulders. "Don't think about it."

He was shaking, he was trying to remain calm and distract himself from the task ahead of us but the reality was, in such a high stakes game and given my current condition he'd have to play at some point. He'd be marking Akashi as point guard. Hyuuga was being quiet as Koganei and Mitobe arrived, I guessed he was thinking about how to keep himself cool-headed during the match against a player he looked up to back in the days of middle school and junior high.

"So we're just waiting for Kagami and Kuroko?" Riko asked once the others arrived. "Don't you guys share an apartment with them?"

"Yeah but Kuroko wanted to take a detour on the way here." Kiyoshi replied. "Kagami went with him."

"We might as well get into the locker room then, they'll catch up I'm sure." She huffed, leading the way inside. "I want you all to stay in the room once we're there. If you wander off then I'll personally hunt you down and drag you back."

Light-hearted threats from her were a little comforting, she was probably as nervous as the rest of us. We followed her to the same locker room we had been stationed in all through the tournament, it was almost as comforting as Riko's threats. We still had over an hour to kill before we'd step out onto that court, Furihata was still trembling slightly but he seemed to be getting himself under control as Riko skipped through one of the most recent recordings of Rakuzan's play. Kagami and Kuroko arrived, both in a drastically more upbeat mood than last night.

"You two seem...happy." Tsuchida remarked as the shadow and light entered the locker room and started getting ready.

"It's the biggest game of our lives." Kagami grinned. "I couldn't be happier."

I raised an eyebrow, he was certainly right but the confidence rolling off of him wasn't entirely genuine, there was an element of fear mixed with it. With half an hour to go, I decided to get into my kit finally, opting to go into one of the cubicles for extra privacy. In a way, I was thankful that I had to wear a sports bra for these matches, it made me feel slightly more 'normal' even if I did shy away from letting the others see me put it on. We could hear the buzz of the crowd as they filled the stadium, I took two of the hormone pills as I saw Furihata begin to get more and more flustered with the increased noise.

"Here." I tossed the box to him, gaining a confused look.

"But I'm not--"

"You can take them if you haven't presented yet." I told him. "They might help with your nerves, that's what they do for me anyway."

It wasn't strictly true, sure they'd have no negative effect on him but I couldn't be certain they'd have an effect at all. I was hoping that telling him they would help would have a placebo effect on him - if he believed they'd work then he'd naturally calm down. Kiyoshi raised an eyebrow at me, clearly catching onto my thinking as the first year popped one of the pills.

"Alright, let’s go and warm up." Riko declared, glancing at her phone. "Just ignore Rakuzan until the referee calls you to line up."

That was easier said than done. Our arrival on the court caused a loud cheer to erupt from the stands, even I was feeling the pressure as Hyuuga passed a ball to me to begin warming up. Rakuzan were already on their half of the court, their presence was overwhelming, it felt like an entire pack of alphas were staring at us as they regarded us with curiosity. That being said, it wouldn't surprise me if they were all alphas, Rakuzan would pull a stunt like that after all.

"Easy." Kiyoshi told me, hand between my shoulder blades. "Breathe."

I exhaled, unaware I had even been holding my breath, I let my body relax and passed the ball to Hyuuga. If there was a match that I had to keep my cool-headedness then it was this one, there would be no room for error and no excuse for losing my cool. I owed it to the team to be the best point guard I could be.

Rakuzan seemed confident, they made every single basket in their warm up time, there were three uncrowned kings on that team so it didn't really surprise us, it didn't mean that it wasn't intimidating though. Just before the match was due to begin Kuroko approached Akashi, they met in the centre of the court and both teams were captivated by the two miracles' exchange.

"So Tetsuya, are you going to show me _your_ basketball?" Akashi asked, voice cool and composed.

"No. I'm going to show you a better style, Akashi-kun." Kuroko replied, keeping his gaze on the other.

"Oh?" The red-head seemed amused by this challenge.

"I'm going to show you Seirin's basketball."

I looked at Kagami expectantly, the style Kuroko was referring to was their duo combo probably, made possible by our teamwork. With little else to be said between the two of them, they parted and the main event started. Kagami went for the tip-off against Nebuya, I wasn't entirely sure what our plan was for this match other than 'go big or go home' so I had to be prepared for anything, preparation that paid off as I received the ball and instinctively passed to Kuroko. He wasted no time in unleashing his ignite pass kai, overpowering it as Hyuuga fumbled with the ball but managed to keep it in.

"Cool it." I told the first year, watching Mibuchi block Hyuuga's shot.

"Senpai." Kuroko acknowledged, unlike Hyuuga I didn't demand respect on the court during heat-of-the-moment exchanges, I relied more on setting an example to the freshmen than beating it into them with words.

The counter attack was swift and annoyingly efficient, however our ace was more than ready to block the attempted shot. He stole the ball and quickly regained the ground lost in Nebuya's charge, Akashi guarded the basket but Kagami unexpectedly - to me at least - used his meteor jam move which propelled him into the zone as he scored. It was a quick transition, Kagami taking care of offence and defence and scoring twice more.

"Remind me again why I'm here?" I jokingly remarked to Kiyoshi.

"Because Kagami won't last the entire match and he's not as skilled as you are." The stone cold response came.

I clicked my tongue, guessing that any puns this match would go unappreciated. Kuroko was subbed out, Mitobe taking his place in a move to adapt our play, Kagami would take up the offence and we'd handle the defence. I was beginning to think that this was going too smoothly when Kagami scored another basket. So far Akashi had hardly done anything worth mentioning, I had been marking him but he seemed very relaxed and uninterested until Kagami managed to pass his three other team-mates and score.

"Sup." Hayama's honeyed voice caught me off guard.

"You swapped marks." I noted, Hayama was a force to be reckoned with I knew that much. He smiled at me as Kagami appeared to pass Akashi but then missed the shot.

"You looked down on me." Akashi stated to the ace. "That was your fatal mistake."

Mibuchi scored a three-pointer, his form eerily similar to Hyuuga's, or rather Hyuuga's was similar to Mibuchi's, the uncrowned king had been our captain's idol back in the day and it showed as Rakuzan scored effortlessly. They were still behind by a few points but we couldn't afford to let up. I couldn't shake the way Hayama kept staring at me, even when neither of us had the ball he was _right there_ next to me.

"Do you have a problem?" I asked.

"No."

I narrowed my eyes, his scent was strange, I couldn't quite work out if he was alpha or omega or even a beta. Akashi had the ball again and was facing off against Kagami, I moved to work defence rather than be out in the open, I thought for a second that our ace was successful in shutting him down but they were dashed hopes. The captain's power was making itself known as Kagami fell to his knees, I tried to focus on the other's movements, preparing my eagle spear but he passed the ball to Mibuchi before I could get anywhere near it. My eyes followed the ball, Mibuchi evaded Kiyoshi and would've scored if Mitobe hadn't had blocked it.

We countered quickly, I was running through the different plays we could go with but most of them relied on our opponents having an obvious weakness in either offence or defence, Rakuzan had neither. Kagami seemed distracted as Akashi guarded, but with a lack of other options I passed to him. He immediately passed to Mitobe who demonstrated why he was so valuable to us with his hook shot.

"Nice call." Hyuuga told me as Mitobe and Kuroko swapped back.

"Kagami's the one who called it." I smiled. "Why are we getting Kuroko back on? Surely everyone's going to be focused on him?"

Hyuuga shrugged. "Riko has her reasons. Let's just stick to our job and let her make those calls."

I nodded, wiping the sweat from my neck with my jersey. The crowd was buzzing as they saw Kuroko re-enter the game, I noted that Akashi was back marking me, Hayama with Kagami. The captain gave off this overwhelming presence that wasn't just his alpha scent, I held his gaze, one crimson eye and one orange eye. Our first play with Kuroko ended in failure, Hyuuga too tightly marked to receive the ball and score. I was unable to steal the ball as Akashi quickly passed it to Hayama, we got the first glimpse of the uncrowned king's power dribble as he passed Kagami and scored. It was a sight that I'd have to contend with later.

With possession came a new problem, I passed the ball to Kuroko expecting him to successfully use his misdirection to pass it through to Hyuuga. Akashi intercepted the pass, sending it to Mibuchi who scored within seconds of us restarting the play. As Akashi approached Kuroko I felt my head ache slightly, something about Akashi singling out Kuroko sent an uneasy feeling through me.

"Without your misdirection, you are nothing. You're a liability to your team and have no value as a player." The captain declared, staring down Kuroko who's eyes widened at the words.

Mayuzumi was tasked with marking Kuroko, I was confused at who this fifth player of Rakuzan was but that was beside the point as Akashi stole the ball from me, the uneasiness in me grew as the ball went out of play in a one-off show of carelessness. It was no surprise that Kuroko was subbed out, Tsuchida came on, calling for a huddle before we restarted.

"Okay, so Kuroko's coming back soon. We have to find ways of playing with him otherwise victory is completely out of the question." He told us. "Coach says we need to use this time to pay Kuroko and Kagami back for all the times they've saved our asses."

"Of course she'd put it like that." Hyuuga sighed. "It's natural for team-mates to help each other, of course we'll figure something out."

We were level at fifteen points when Kuroko came back, just as Tsuchida said he would, his first act was to attempt his vanishing drive on this Mayuzumi character, I was sceptical as he was blocked. His phantom shot also unlucky as Hayama snatched the ball away and assisted Mibuchi in taking the lead on the scoreboard. We didn't show our frustration, Kiyoshi wrestled for possession, his vice claw sealing it, before passing to Hyuuga. Our captain's barrier-jumper bringing our teams level again as the buzzer sounded.

I sighed as we took a breather, if that was just the first quarter then the next three would be the end of me. Kuroko would sit out again, he swore he would return to seal our victory, the break was short and sweet, the uneasiness in my mind wasn't leaving but it wasn't growing as we set up to start the second quarter. I hoped it would leave sooner rather than later.

 

\--- 

 

I had been marking Mayuzumi when the request for a substitution rang out, I was confused as Mitobe walked off and Furihata nervously stood on the sidelines. I felt my stomach twist as the brunette took up his mark against Akashi, visibly trembling as he held the other's gaze. The captain seemed amused by our first year's audacity to look him in the eye, smirking slightly as he moved quickly around him. Furihata tripped over his own feet and fell backwards, gritting his teeth as I helped him up.

"I-I can't do this." He babbled.

I took him by his shoulders. "Yes you can." I told him. "I believe in you."

He was shocked, I was too, at my outburst. I couldn't explain the feeling in my chest as he looked at me with doe eyes, I just wanted him to believe he could do this, I didn't want Akashi to disregard him because he was inexperienced and borderline terrified.

"Listen to me Furi." I whispered. "Coach believes in you enough to put you in the game, to put you up against Akashi of all people. You have our support, you're not alone in this. Show us what you're made of."

He nodded, whether he was actually taking this on-board was another matter. I let him go and exhaled, I had no clue what Riko was thinking but I had to trust her calls. Kiyoshi ruffled my hair but said nothing, the uneasiness had grown a little more as I returned to marking Mayuzumi. Riko's plan, whatever it was, didn't come to fruition the next time the two of them met, Akashi glided around Furihata again as if he wasn't even there.

I exchanged a glance with Kagami, he seemed to have an idea. It was third time lucky for us as Akashi came up against Furihata, a fire in the brunette's eyes as he tried to steal the ball, as Akashi evaded him he came up against Kagami. I realised that Furihata's entire purpose was to throw Akashi off so Kagami could launch a surprise attack. Unfortunately, even though the shot missed, Nebuya caught the rebound and the points were still scored.

"Furi switch marks." I demanded, noting how he seemed utterly defeated. "Just be ready."

He gave me a confused look but nodded, Hyuuga raised an eyebrow as I faced Akashi again.

"You're being gutsy." He remarked, the first words he had uttered to me. "I suppose an omega like you would have to be."

I didn't reply, getting into a war of words with him would distract me too much, I simply stowed away the irritation for another time. My own plan for Furihata would be revealed soon enough, with Rakuzan underestimating his abilities I had set the stage for him to shine. Whilst I held Akashi's attention, Kiyoshi passed the ball to Furihata who was hardly being marked by Mayuzumi, I smiled as he made the shot and scored.

"Way to go Furi!" The calls from the bench lifted our spirits, we were only seven points behind and our confidence wasn't suffering as much as most people thought it would.

Akashi regarded me with a frosty expression. "Am I supposed to be impressed?"

I shrugged, our marks swapped again. With a basket under his belt I was sure that Furihata would be able to handle Akashi better, not necessarily win against him but his confidence had been restored enough to face him on more equal ground. It seemed that Akashi had also noticed this, deciding to whip out his ankle break to demoralise us.

"No." Furihata snapped, getting to his feet quickly, I felt a change in his scent as he chased after Akashi. I realised a second too late why I had been feeling uneasy.

"Hyuuga." I called, across the court. "Hyuuga we have to pull Furi out."

"Why?" He asked, clearly confused.

"He's going into heat."

He didn't seem to believe me but one look at our first year confirmed it. He was guarding Akashi but he was trembling again, there was no way Akashi hadn't noticed it, sweat was trickling off Furihata as he stood his ground against the unmated alpha. I wasn't sure what came over me, my head ached like hell and all I could think about was getting Furihata away from Akashi. The captain smirked as he glided around Furihata again, ankle breaking for good measure as he scored.

"Furi, Furi you need to go off." I told him, kneeling next to him as he sat on the floor and trembled.

"No!" He cried. "No I have to keep--"

Hyuuga and Kiyoshi were keeping their distance, one part because their scents wouldn't help and also I was fiercely protective. Rakuzan had called a time-out, we should've been back with our team but Furihata was refusing to be benched, he was exhausted by he was also pumped up. I felt for him, I really did but he couldn't keep playing like this.

"I'll get Fukuda to replace you--"

"No!"

"Furi..."

"Let me play senpai." He pleaded, taking my hands. "Please, just til the end of the quarter."

I wasn't authorised to make that call, I looked to Riko for help but she threw her hands in the air. This was beyond her capabilities. The obvious - and safest - call was to pull Furihata out of the match but there was a slightly more unorthodox call we could make. We could use him as bait.

"Absolutely not." Hyuuga stated. "That's unfair on him."

Riko nodded in agreement. "I know what you're saying Izuki but no. I can't let you do that."

"He's refusing to leave the court, what else can we do?" I argued back. "Look, he says he'll come off at half-time. He just wants to prove himself okay?"

They exchanged glances. "If anything bad happens then it's on your head." Hyuuga murmured. "And you have to clear it with him."

Strangely enough, Furihata was fine with the idea of being used as bait. The play shifted to a battle of the shooting guards, pitting Hyuuga and Mibuchi against each other as Akashi continued to be marked by Furihata. I kept an eye on how the first year was holding up, Mayuzumi snorted as he followed my gaze.

"You really think Akashi's going to fall for that?" He remarked. "We have a bit more self-control than that you pathetic mutt."

My gaze fixed on his emotionless eyes. The so-called 'new phantom sixth man' had more bark to him than Kuroko, even so, I gritted my teeth and tried to focus on how Mibuchi was currently winning the shoot-out, Rakuzan was slipping ahead of us. Mayuzumi was difficult to read, but not impossible. I had learnt how to read Kuroko's plays and Mayuzumi was very similar in how he'd move before trying to disappear. We were both caught off guard by the referee's whistle, Hyuuga had fouled trying to stop Mibuchi.

"Fuck." He cussed as he walked away, cracking his neck muscles.

Kiyoshi caught my attention and asked me to pass to him whenever I got the ball. I nodded, casting my eyes back to Furihata and feeling my breathing hitch. Akashi was _very_ close to our first year, whispering something in his ear with a smirk. I saw red, marching over and pulling Furihata behind me, he was shaking even more now as I stared down Akashi, who regarded me with an amused gaze.

"Protective." He observed. "A classic trait of an omega with everything to lose."

Mayuzumi's words echoed in my mind, I was anything but a pathetic mutt. My eyes ached again as I stared into his, I wasn't sure if this was some other power of his or an added symptom of getting this worked up.

"Furi, you're benched." I uttered, keeping my eyes on Akashi, I felt bad for letting this escalate like it did but all I could do now was get him away from this out of control alpha.

"Just when I was starting to have fun with him..." Akashi remarked. "I guess I'll just have to toy with you instead."

His Emperor Eye came alive, my head ached even more as I felt my legs begin to fail. The referee's whistle blasted near us, ceasing all confrontation. As Furihata got taken off court and Fukuda moved to replace him I was tugged harshly aside by Kiyoshi.

"What the hell were you thinking?" He hissed, worry and frustration clear on his face. "You can't go up against Akashi like that!"

I shook my head, panting from coming into contact with Akashi and ending up with dire results. "I-I just...snapped I guess."

Hyuuga was talking to Riko, we were still waiting to restart the match after Mibuchi scored the penalty, I wanted to close my eyes but they ached so much when I did that I found myself rubbing my forehead. We finally restarted, I passed the ball to Kiyoshi as we switched gears in an attempt to shake up the match a little. As I watched Nebuya out-muscle Kiyoshi I realised just how screwed we really were, we hadn't managed to shut down any of the uncrowned kings and Akashi was as dangerous as ever. In a stroke of dumb luck, Fukuda got handed the ball and managed to slip past Mayuzumi to score a basket, it was a brief moment of celebration before Rakuzan completely overwhelmed us in the closing minutes of the quarter.

I held a damp towel to my aching head, Furihata had been given another one of the hormone pills to try and ease his heat's effect on him, Fukuda had run out of stamina so Kawahara would step up to the plate. Hyuuga's hand on my shoulder gave me some comfort, he evidently didn't see the point in lecturing me for my behaviour. Riko ran through our plan for the third quarter; Hyuuga would try to claw back more points and Kagami would take over offence.

However, with the scoreboard sitting at 67 - 34 in Rakuzan's favour, the odds weren't looking in our favour.

"Izuki?" A weak voice called from next to me.

"Yeah?" I replied, peeking out from under the towel at Furihata.

"Thanks for believing in me, e-even if I fucked up in the end."

I smiled. "You didn't fuck up Furi, you did great. We'll take it from here though."

How we would ensure victory would remain a mystery to me, we had to figure out how to overcome this challenge and quickly.


	16. The ace's duty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GAH. Okay so I got kinda emotional towards the end.  
> Also I'm hoping to update again tomorrow *cough* Christmas chapter *cough* but that depends on how long I end up spending with my family.

"I didn't touch him!" Hyuuga protested. The referee was having none of it though, fouling him for a third time and causing more friction in the team. He had been trying to stop Mibuchi's shot again when he allegedly fouled, our captain wasn't the most cool-headed of the team and had gone to argue it, which ended _so_ well.

"Unbelievable." Kiyoshi sighed as Riko immediately called Hyuuga off the court, if he got another foul he would've been out of the game for good so this was a smart move.

Koganei came on, happy regardless of the circumstances, Mibuchi took the three penalty shots, missing two of them which surprised everyone. Koganei was quick to get into the flow of the game, I felt a little more at ease since he entered the game. We managed to get in a few uninterrupted plays before Riko called a time-out. Hyuuga was staring at the floor utterly disappointed and furious with himself, I knelt down in front of him and took his face in my hands, making him look at me.

"It's not your fault." I told him. "Don't blame yourself."

He gently removed my hands from his face. "Shun, I need you to carry on with the plan. You're effectively captain on that court now."

I nodded, pressing my forehead to his before standing up again and sighing heavily. I regarded the team with a renewed calmness, I pushed my personal thoughts about the first half aside and focused on getting us back on track. Riko told me that Kuroko wanted to be put back in, replacing Kawahara who was running out a steam quickly, I had no problem with that.

"Okay. So how do you wanna play this quarter captain?" Kagami asked me, I shook my head and told him to just call me senpai, that title would always belong to Hyuuga in my mind and it would feel wrong to take it from him.

"Continue on the offence, you're our main scorer now Kagami. Kiyoshi you defend our basket and don't let Nebuya out muscle you again, Koganei and Kuroko stick to midfield, pass and shoot if you can but your main objective is to help Kiyoshi defend."

"Can I say something senpai?" Kuroko murmured, he had been a wreck a few moments ago as our luck ran out but he seemed to have pulled himself together. I nodded and gestured for him to continue. "I just want to say that I only want to become number one in Japan with Seirin. I can't imagine getting there with any other team."

It was a small boost for our spirits. I lead them out onto the court, exhaling as I squared up against Akashi again. He didn't seem fazed by me taking up the captaincy now that Hyuuga had been subbed off, but he continued to regard me with a curious gaze. Kuroko's words had inspired us, Kiyoshi got the ball and passed it to me, I evaded Akashi barely and passed it to Koganei who scored, another morale booster for us. The one-on-one between Mayuzumi and Kuroko shocked most of the crowd, I ran through all the possible outcomes as quickly as my aching mind would allow before the third year pushed past our shadow. Kagami appeared out of nowhere and blocked the shot, firing the ball to me so I could launch the counter attack with Koganei hot on my heels to get any rebound that might occur.

"Nice one Itzuki." He congratulated as the buzzer sounded. I gave him a thumbs up as I sighed, we couldn't let up now.

It was a short-lived success rate. Mayuzumi took offence at being marked as the weakest member of Rakuzan and started scoring out of spite rather than hunger for victory. I bit my lip as I figured that maybe we had underestimated him. Kuroko didn't seem convinced that Mayuzumi was really the new phantom sixth man, commenting about how the other simply dislikes him because they are similar, mirroring a remark made by Takao in their first match. It was unclear as to why Kuroko said that, possibly just to confuse Mayuzumi but knowing Kuroko there was more at play there. As Rakuzan took back possession and began their assault the ball was intercepted mid-pass. Hayama scrambled to mark Kuroko, probably assuming that he was about to use his vanishing drive, but the shadow passed to his light who went on to dunk the ball.

I sighed in relief at us finally scoring. We were still 21 points behind but it was a small step towards victory. I glanced at Hyuuga on the bench and gave him a thumbs up, we were getting there. Koganei and I worked to supply Kagami with another opportunity to score, narrowly avoiding getting the ball stolen again as I passed it to the ace. We tried it again but this time Akashi was faster, stealing the ball from my hands and tearing off down the court. He would've scored immediately had Kagami not stood in his way, the familiar look in his eyes as he sunk into the zone for the second time that match.

Akashi seemed more irritated than fearful as he managed to pass to an unguarded Mayuzumi who proceeded to supply to Nebuya and ensure a score. I pulled Koganei aside and told him to mark Mibuchi whilst I'd handle Hayama. We had to shut the uncrowned kings down quickly before they became a nuisance again. I had faith in Kagami being able to stop Akashi and Kuroko would be done overwriting Mayuzumi soon. Kiyoshi had to keep pushing himself to keep up with Nebuya, I was worried but anything I said wouldn't be listened to in that moment, this was a personal battle between ex team-mates after all.

Kuroko surprised us by firing his ignite pass to Koganei to score an easy basket, Koganei whimpered slightly as the force the ball exerted when he caught it but laughed it off. Despite our best efforts we just weren't able to stop Rakuzan's attacks, we could only counter them and that was rarely happening either. Even with Kagami in the zone, defeating them would be impossible if we didn't stop their attacks.

"Seirin's on fire right now." Hayama remarked as he received the ball in front of me. "You're wasting your time though."

"Of course you'd say that." I uttered. watching his fingers as he dribbled the ball, he was using four which was somewhat concerning but I had faith in my own ability to stop him passing. He raised an eyebrow before smiling, his tooth poking out from between his lips, as he moved quickly. I tried to predict his movements but he was too fast. I was reminded of when I faced Kasamatsu and how fast he was but this was different; I had to be at least three moves ahead of Hayama to stop him. He went on to score with ease, simply too quick for us to stop him.

"It's okay Itzuki." Koganei told me.

My heart was racing, something about this challenge of stopping Hayama had awakened something inside of me, my head was aching again but it was less to do with pain and more to do with the prickling that I felt when I used my Eagle eye. "Leave Hayama to me Koga." I stated with a smirk. "I'll stop him."

He pouted slightly. "Oh great, you've caught the Kagami bug."

Kuroko's fast passing got Kiyoshi to score, I ended up facing Hayama again, he was getting cocky now and that would be vital to my victory over him. He used all five fingers to pass me this time, I noticed the small glimmer of hope in the way he moved. As he scored again I was certain I had figured out a way to stop him. I clued Kuroko in on my plan and we set it up as Kagami scored another basket for us and handed possession back to Rakuzan.

"Not given up yet?" Hayama remarked as I marked him again. I shook my head, not bothering to say anything as he passed me again, Kuroko stepped in front of him and I lunged back to try and dislodge the ball with my eagle spear. Hayama sensed my presence and swerved around Kuroko, inadvertently stepping into Kagami's 'territory'.

"Have fun." I replied, Kagami blocked Hayama's shot and fired it to Kuroko. Koganei received it via ignite pass and was about to shoot. "Koga, pass it back!" I called, noting that Mibuchi was too close for comfort, Hayama was back marking me so I sent the ball to Kagami so he could dunk it.

Hayama didn't look happy, I couldn't resist stirring the pot a little. "I may not be on your level of skill, but I'm glad you're not as smart as I am."

I succeeded in riling up Hayama enough for him to make a careless pass, Kuroko easily intercepting it and leading to another basket scored. We were catching up slowly and our confidence was growing. I high-fived Koganei and Kiyoshi, getting a small scolding from Kiyoshi about making mean comments, but he couldn't say much with the way he had been trash talking Nebuya.

Akashi took on Kagami's zone-state. He stood just outside the territory and shot a three-pointer. My heart sank, we had naively forgotten about Akashi's near perfect record of getting long shots. When it came to our success rates none of us could beat Hyuuga, I could get the easy close range shots, Koganei too, Kiyoshi and Kagami specialised in dunking and alley-oops. However, even if Hyuuga was on the court, Mibuchi was more accurate.

Koganei went up against Mibuchi. I knew he hadn't been playing basketball for long but he had played other sports that had refined his skills of observation, most notably; tennis. He carefully gauged Mibuchi's movements, as I watched the pair I took note of the mark on Mibuchi's neck, it was so faint that I hadn't clocked it at first. I turned to Hayama who seemed void of a similar mark, it wasn't important in that moment as Mibuchi seemed rattled by Koganei's reactions to his movements, missing the original shot but Nebuya secured the points easily enough. With Nebuya appearing unstoppable, it fell to Kiyoshi to try and stop him, however the former team-mate seemed to agitate Kiyoshi with a remark about his lack of will to fight. I was powerless to stop it happening, only able to pick up the pieces afterwards with Koganei.

"You're hard-working Kiyoshi!" He declared. "And besides, you're gonna be a dad soon so screw that guy and his big-headedness. You've got a kick-ass point guard for a mate and a-uh-fiercely protective captain as a lover."

"You have a strange way of motivating people Koga." I remarked patting his shoulder. "But it'd sound a heck of a lot weirder from anyone else."

He smiled as we moved to defend again. Mibuchi was being tagged as the main scorer so Koganei was working to block his shot again, I watched as the shooter adopted the form of the oblivion shot, the one that no-one can ever jump for, it would be over before Koganei could react. Or that's what everyone thought, despite previous shots in that form paralysing the opposition, Koganei jumped although he wasn't able to stop the shot he proved it could be done if someone tall enough jumped.

Rakuzan were leading by 20 points when the quarter ended.

"I'm coming back on." Hyuuga declared. standing up and tossing a towel aside.

"You sure?" I asked, accepting a water bottle.

"It's do or die time." He replied. "Besides, I can't make you do all the work."

I laughed, wrapping an arm around his shoulders as I pulled him to look out over the court. "Whatever happens now, these are the last ten minutes." I murmured, catching hold of the chain around my neck and pulling the compass charm out. "I guess I'll have to point you in the right direction and get one last victory."

"You're not gonna be gone forever Shun." He replied, giving me a fonder look. "Just a while."

Kiyoshi joined us, ruffling my hair and nodding to Hyuuga. "Ready for one last showdown?"

"I wouldn't be stood here if I wasn't."

Kagami and Kuroko stepped closer to us, this was it; the last quarter, months of training had gone into our journey here and here we were in the final. We took the time to have a huddle, the morale in the team was at an all-time high as we said our famous cheer one last time.

"Seirin, fight!"

 

\---

 

Kuroko fired his ignite pass down the court, not a trace of hesitation in his actions as Hyuuga received the ball and quickly released a three-pointer. I smiled to myself as he continued to co-ordinate us, his voice confident and loud as he called for the change in gears. He successfully threw Mibuchi off, the other missing the shot and starting a battle beneath the net between Kiyoshi and Nebuya.

"Don't you _dare_ lose to a buff-fool like him, Kiyoshi!" Hyuuga shouted at our centre, I felt my chest tighten, this was the Hyuuga that I hadn't seen in a while; he was actively encouraging us in the middle of our match.

"Remember what Koga said!" I added, our words giving Kiyoshi a boost as he managed to swing around and fire the ball down the court for Kagami to score.

Hyuuga nodded to me as Kiyoshi gave us a thumbs up, we were weary of disturbing Kagami at this point, he was so far into the zone that he had stopped being responsive to our calls. Kuroko didn't seem concerned, he didn't seem overly happy either but we put that out of our minds as Akashi set up another contest between Hyuuga and Mibuchi. I watched anxiously as Mibuchi set up for another oblivion shot, there was a moment of hesitation on the Rakuzan player's face before he released the ball. Hyuuga jumped up and batted the ball away, beginning our counter-attack. Kuroko worked quickly to set up another opportunity, Kiyoshi's confidence boosting further as he dunked the ball.

We continued like that, closing the gap more and more, my head was aching again, what was going on? Furihata wasn't on court and none of the others were going into heat, what other causes were there for it? Kagami took advantage of Akashi suddenly guarding the basket single-handedly, opting to go for a meteor jam. My eyes stung as the ball bounced away, Akashi had entered the zone.

Hyuuga moved in front of Akashi, I watched with horror as he was subjected to Akashi's ankle break. I dug my heels in, I had faced Akashi's Emperor Eye before and lived - barely - so I hedged my bets and focused, my feeling was that the Emperor Eye and the Eagle Eye weren't that different. Akashi paused in front of me, almost glaring as I refused to submit.

"Nice try." He stated, eyes widening.

My legs shook, I didn't want to submit but that alone wouldn't stop the inevitable. I kept my gaze on him, he seemed surprised that I wasn't on the floor already. I gritted my teeth, my head felt like it was splitting open as we regarded each other, if I kept him stood still for more than five seconds then he'd lose possession.

"Kuroko isn't the only one who can stand up to the likes of you." I hissed, not entirely sure myself what I meant by that statement. Akashi tilted his head slightly, ball changing hands as he read the situation in front of him. Was I really the first one to defy his Emperor eye?

"Try again once you've lost everything you care about." He told me, his eyes lit up even more and sent shock waves through me.

I hit the floor, knocking the wind out of me but I had landed on my side so I wasn't too worried. I was aware that the buzzer sounded and Riko called a time out. His words echoed in my head as Hyuuga helped me up, trying not to fuss too much but obviously worried about me. I vaguely explained to him how my head had been aching all match and it seemed to be connected with Akashi's Emperor eye activating. He nodded, offering me some water before turning his attention back to the team talk, keeping an arm around me as I rubbed my eyes.

"I'll take down Akashi." Kagami declared.

It was a unanimous vote; we were fully trusting Kagami with this match now. We all put our fists to Kagami's chest as a sign of trust, he smiled and nodded, determination written on his face. We stepped back out on the court, I used to find it hard to trust one person with an entire match but after many close calls and buzzer-beaters, Kagami had earned our trust, we would only exist in the next few plays to defend and secure passes to our ace.

As Kasamatsu said; it's an ace's duty to lead the team to victory.

It seemed that Akashi was also taking this approach, abandoning his team-mates and facing Kagami head on. To an outsider the play looked sloppy but it was a series of carefully calculated movements fuelled by both ace's determination to win. It was getting more and more desperate at shots were missed, blocked and finally the ball going out of play. Kagami seemed defeated already, panting heavily as Kuroko approached him and asked to be included in this intense battle of aces.

I exchanged a glance with Kiyoshi, we had been more or less inactive since restarting but that could all change now. I had been watching Akashi's defensive plays and how wide his vision was, as much as he wanted to think he could see everything he couldn't stop every attack. When I got the ball I quickly passed, it ping-ponged its way around the team until it ended up with Kiyoshi who went for a dunk but was stopped by Akashi.

"Get back!" Hyuuga barked at me, Akashi had the ball and was wasting no time in countering.

Kuroko and Kagami were handling defence, already predicting Akashi's warpath. I noticed the weird set up, normally Kuroko would be in front to distract the player before Kagami would steal the ball but this time it had been reversed. Akashi didn't hesitate, going for his cross-over; faking left but going right. Usually it worked, usually everyone was watching the ball but our shadow watched his light instead and moved the opposite direction.

I received the ball and immediately sent it down court in time for Kagami to receive and drive past Hayama with ease. Akashi's scent magnified as he became frustrated, tearing after Kagami as I just watched. Kagami dunked the ball, Akashi fell to the ground. Things got very hectic, frantic passes and missed shots from Akashi all boded well for us as we started closing the gap little by little.

"Single digits." I breathed, Riko called a time-out and laid out the truth that Kagami was reaching his limit, also that Akashi was probably going to be like a cornered animal if things keep up this way.

However, what met us on the court again wasn't a cornered animal, I had to do a double take entirely. Akashi regarded us with two crimson eyes. As he drove forward I expected Kuroko and Kagami to easily stop him with their quasi-emperor eye but he evaded it.

"Long time no see."

Kuroko's eyes widened as Akashi passed to Mibuchi and the other made a perfect shot, gaining praise from the captain which in itself was strange.

"He's back." Kuroko told us as we regrouped. "Akashi-kun is back."

I wanted to scream. We had three fucking minutes left and Rakuzan _had_ to pull something like this out of the bag. I wondered if this was how our opponents felt when we beat them. Kagami was panting heavily but still declared that he was going to take Akashi down. I exhaled and tried to calm my mind, I'd be useless if I didn't keep my cool now. We tried to regain the upper hand, Akashi was moving faster and evading all attempts to steal the ball. It became clear that he had entered the zone, utter horror took over as we realised that the entire team was in the zone too. I gritted my teeth, feeling my chest tighten as they started to overwhelm us once more.

The ball went out of play, we were at our limit, there was nothing we could do now that Kagami was out of the zone himself. The crowd was silent as we paused, we were at a loss. I gritted my teeth as the bitter sting of defeat started hitting me, there was no way that we could beat Rakuzan now.

"Go for it Kuroko! Don't give up!" A single voice called from somewhere in the crowd, I didn't recognise it but Kuroko's head snapped up at the brunette on the balcony. "I said don't give up!"

There was a confused murmur but our shadow was anything but stoic in that moment, I gathered that this was his friend who the miracles beat in middle school as tears formed in Kuroko's eyes. They held their gaze as the other picked up a basketball and showed it to Kuroko, our shadow smiling through his tears.

"Dammit Tetsu! Kagami, you guys won against us didn't you?" Aomine's brash voice called. "If you can't defeat Rakuzan, I'll go after your heads!"

I wasn't sure what was happening as another voice joined the fray.

"The same goes for us! Go and win Seirin!" Kise's sing-song voice called from another direction.

"Go and defeat Rakuzan, and Akashi!" Midorima shouted, the most emotion in his voice I'd ever heard.

Soon the whole stadium was echoing with calls for us to not give up, to beat Rakuzan, to keep fighting, to win. I was trembling slightly as all we could hear was the crowd chanting for Seirin over and over again. I felt a wave of confidence wash over us as we came to terms with the fact that the crowd was behind us, they believed in us, now we just had to believe in ourselves once more.

I wasn't sure how we knew it, I guess it was down to our immense trust in one another, or maybe we were searching for a miracle - literally - as Kagami dove back into the zone, deeper than before and unlocking a power that none of us had seen before. All I knew was I had to act first and think later if we were to succeed. It was almost like I was in a trance as I automatically read the plays and moved to follow through, passing and receiving only to pass again in quick succession.

The points tallied up quickly, I didn't even process how many shots had been made, how many we'd stopped but when the clock ran down to less than 30 seconds it was all caught in a very finite balance. A balance I was tasked with tipping in the right direction. Kiyoshi was at his limit, he wasn't suitable for this last play as I intercepted the ball from Mibuchi and kept myself calm.

Eight seconds.

Kagami was guarded by Akashi and Mayuzumi, Hyuuga called for the ball and I passed it to him. Mibuchi was intent on defending to the point of fouling. Hyuuga made the shot count anyway, gaining a free throw that would decide the game. He was shaking as we regrouped briefly, there were literally seconds of the match remaining after this and only one possible play of ours would bring us victory.

"You get the rebound." Hyuuga told Kiyoshi.

"You're gonna--"

"Yes. You know how this is going to end Teppei."

They regarded each other for a second before Kiyoshi nodded and walked to his position.

"The basket's that way." I remarked, pointing as Hyuuga groaned and smiled.

"Very funny." He sighed. "Get over there already."

I nodded, taking up my spot. The crowd hushed as Hyuuga bounced the ball, preparing himself for this moment. I wondered what he was thinking about, was he thinking about all the years of basketball we had played? The losses? The victories? The late practices with just the three of us in freshmen year? Our latest matches or our first ones way back in middle school? I couldn't be sure but as he took the shot I caught a glimpse of a tear-stained cheek and a soft smile, whatever happened now, he didn't regret any of it.

Kiyoshi caught the rebound, we knew where this would end as Kuroko moved into position. The shadow shifted to take up his shooting form, Akashi was there in an instant.

"This ends now Tetsuya."

"No. For I am the shadow." Kuroko responded with a smile, shooting the ball upwards, Kagami jumped and caught the ball, slamming it into the net as the clock ran out and the buzzer rang.

There was a split second where everything went silent, in my mind at least, before the crowd erupted in cheers. I was swept up in Kiyoshi's arms as the rest of the team ran onto the court.

"We did it!" He cried into my shoulder. I was shaking as he put me back down, Koganei immediately ran up to me and hugged me, I couldn't quite believe it. When I eventually got out of his tight embrace I found Hyuuga, he was staring at the scoreboard; 106 - 105, tears streaming down his face.

"Junpei." I remarked, taking his hand in mine. "Junpei we won."

He nodded, wiping his tears away and drawing me into a hug. "Yeah, yeah we did." He murmured.

Akashi was utterly broken as he came to terms with his loss, Kuroko approached him and extended a hand. For a moment the two just stared at each other before Akashi smiled and accepted Kuroko's hand. It was a small but significant gesture from the miracle, I remembered how Kuroko said beating Akashi wouldn't be enough to bring the rest of them back together as friends, but there was hope in the captain's eyes as they spoke quietly.

"Senpai?" Furihata was by my side, trembling slightly as he smiled.

"Yeah?"

"D-Do you think Kuroko would introduce me to Akashi-kun?"

I exchanged an amused glance with Hyuuga. "Why don't you just approach him yourself?"

He shook his head. "He would pay no attention to me, I'm just--"

"An extraordinarily brave point guard." A calm voice interrupted. I felt a little apprehensive about Akashi still as Furihata spun around and regarded him with wide eyes.

"I-uh...no not really!"

Akashi shook his head, a small smile on his face. "I mean it, not many have shown that much bravery against my other self." His gaze fixed to me as he offered his hand. "I apologise for what my other self said to you, you both showed courage that I can only commend you on."

I raised an eyebrow, taking his hand and shaking it. "Can I ask you something?"

He nodded.

"Is there any connection between my eagle eye and your emperor eye?"

He folded his arms across his chest. "We both have incredible observational skills, with more training I expect you could also use the emperor eye."

I noted how Furihata wasn't even listening to the conversation, he was just staring at Akashi. We still had a few minutes until the trophy giving ceremony so I decided to go and see Hayama, keeping an eye on the two point guards as I did so.

"Well done I guess." Hayama sighed, still annoyed by my comment.

"You played well." I told him. "You still deflected my eagle spear."

He chuckled, he seemed like a pretty easy-going guy when he wasn't playing, I briefly considered whether we could be friends once we left this arena. We shook hands, each aware of the other's strength. I cast my eyes to the other members of Rakuzan; Nebuya was speaking to Kiyoshi, Mibuchi was speaking quietly to Mayuzumi, his hands holding the third year's face tenderly. As I glanced over at Akashi and Furihata again I smiled slightly, Furihata was babbling away about something, probably just overwhelmed with nerves but the captain smiled and nodded, maybe his old-self was more compassionate than we thought

Finally it was time, we lined up and welcomed Shuutoku onto the court to accept the third place trophy, I nodded to Takao as he smiled at me. Rakuzan received the second place award, visibly worn out but graceful in defeat.

" _Ladies and Gentlemen, your Winter Cup Champions; Seirin High from Tokyo_." The announcer declared, confetti falling as Hyuuga was presented with the trophy, our captain tugged Kuroko to hold one handle as they lifted it in the air. The sounds of cheers echoed around the arena.

We posed for all the media photos, our families came down to congratulate us as well as our friends from the rival teams. The miracles were hesitant at approaching their former captain at first, but Kuroko assured them that the old Akashi had returned and that things were 'back to how they should be'. I smiled as the rest of team Seirin basked in the glory we had fought to obtain.

"Should we really be letting Akashi get so close to Furi?" Hyuuga asked me and Kuroko. "You saw how he was acting earlier."

We both glanced over, Akashi had taken Furihata aside and was gazing at him with a fond look. Kuroko smiled and shrugged. "I think Akashi-kun is smitten."

"What?" Hyuuga choked, giving us a disbelieving look.

"That's the same look you give me." I added. "We might have to keep an eye on this."

He gave me a pained expression before ruffling my hair. "This is your responsibility now, you're the pack mother after all."

I rolled my eyes, deciding that for now we could leave the two of them alone, gaining eye contact with Akashi briefly and giving him a mindful look, he nodded at me and smiled.

"So we're heading back to Kagami's yeah?" Koganei asked. "Party at the ace's house!"

Kagami seemed a little reluctant but Kuroko nodded anyway before we could object. It was set to be a long night, full of laughter and stuffing our faces with junk food. It was going to be rather cramped in the apartment with so many people around, but falling asleep on the couch surrounded by the friends that had meant to much to us the past few months was the perfect way to end the best day of our lives.

_Best day so far._ I reminded myself, placing my hand over the small bump as we walked to the changing room. There were still many days to come after all.

 


	17. Meri Kuri

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (title inspired by a Japanese song I was listening to whilst writing: Meri Kuri - BoA)
> 
> So I'm terribly sorry I was late with this, apparently it would've been "bad taste" for me to have taken my laptop to my uncle's house yesterday and written gay fanfic whilst being ignored by my family. Oh well~
> 
> Merry Christmas (or Happy Holidays if you prefer) to all of you, I hope this chapter makes you smile and brightens your day! :3

"Can I have your picture so I can show Santa what I want for Christmas?" I asked Kiyoshi.

"Junpei's going to kill you if you make one of those one liners around him." The centre replied, fishing another piece of tinsel out of the box.

I giggled, going back to scrolling through my phone, Hyuuga, Kagami and Kuroko were out doing some last minute food shopping before the guests arrived. We had been convinced to have a 'small' gathering on Christmas Eve by Koganei and the miracles had gotten wind of it - no thanks to Kuroko probably - and within the past day the guest list had doubled. I had my doubts about how everyone would be able to cram into Kagami's apartment but that was quickly forgotten about as Kagami realised he didn't have enough food for everyone.

"What do you think then?" Kiyoshi asked, stepping back from the tree that he had spent a good hour decorating.

"Why did people start having Christmas trees? Because they thought it would _spruce_ things up a bit." I replied, he smiled and made his way over to me, leaning down and tickling me.

"That wasn't the answer I wanted." He chuckled as I swatted his hands away after giggling at his featherlight touches.

He sat on the couch next to me, wrapping an arm around me and letting me lean into his hold, his free hand going to the bump that was very noticeable even when I wore loose shirts and sweaters. It had only been a month since the final against Rakuzan but that didn't seem to translate to my pregnancy which looked a lot further on.

"Someone's enjoying how much Kagami cooks for us." He remarked.

"I just wish they wouldn't keep getting me up at five in the morning to eat." I sighed, covering his hand with my own.

"That'll pass soon."

"Soon?" I repeated. "Teppei this baby is going to be supposedly born in just over a month."

He chuckled, kissing the top of my head. "You know what I mean."

We didn't have to wait long for our house-mates to get back, Kagami grumbling about how 'those stupid miracles better appreciate this' and getting a beanie thrown at him by Kuroko. Hyuuga swore he was never going shopping on Christmas Eve ever again as he flopped down on the couch and leaned against me, pressing his cold hand under my sweater against my thin shirt.

"Junpei!" I scolded, shoving him away, Kiyoshi laughed as I kicked the other alpha for trying to use me as a human heater.

"Aw come on babe." He pined, holding my face instead, his hands were freezing. I scowled at him before taking his hands in mine and breathing on them, rubbing the warmth back into them over time. He kissed my cheek in thanks before saying that he was gonna get changed into something more comfortable.

Kiyoshi told me he was going to help Kagami get started on the food for the party, I nodded and opted to help Kuroko put up the last of the decorations and sort out what music we were gonna be playing. The shadow smiled at me, launching into a tale of the last Christmas the miracles spent together involving a lot of pizza and Kise trying to sing carols down the phone to his older sister. He asked how I was feeling about being around so many alphas for the night, I shrugged and told him I was fine, Hyuuga and Kiyoshi would be a different matter.

"Well most of them are mated." Kuroko sighed. "Aomine-kun is the only one I'm aware of that isn't. Technically Akashi-kun isn't either but I think we both know him and Furihata-kun are meant for each other."

I smiled, Furihata had been glued to his phone since that final match, it was no secret that a certain captain had caught his eye and that the captain was smitten over him. As far as we knew, and I'd like to think I'm pretty observant as pack mother, they hadn't actually had the chance to make it official. They were both attending this party of sorts, there was going to be alcohol - although I wasn't having any for obvious reasons - so it wasn't beyond the bounds of possibility that there'd be a spark.

And of course, Kise arrived with mistletoe so that was going to be a catalyst for some chaos. Kasamatsu didn't look overly amused at the blond asking Kuroko to hang it above the doorway to the bathroom, I managed to defuse the situation by saying Kagami should decide as it's his apartment. The ace snorted at the idea and told Kuroko to hang it somewhere in the lounge area, I ended up sat on the couch with Kasamatsu as Kise started babbling to Kuroko about this new modelling opportunity he got.

"So sock-senpai." I beamed.

"Why are you all calling me that?" He sighed, a slight smile on his face. "First Takao, then you and now Ryouta's started--"

"I call him it in bed occasionally~" The other added with a devious grin.

"Shut up Kise!"

I laughed. "I mean, I only mentioned it to throw you off during the match and then it kinda stuck."

He rolled his eyes, glancing over at his lover who was fixing the small piece of foliage to the lighting fixture with a smile. Hyuuga ended up answering the door to everyone as Kagami and Kiyoshi were busy in the kitchen still, Koganei and Mitobe arrived, I got more cold hands on my face as the excitable one bounded into the lounge and made a beeline for me.

"Itzuki!" He laughed. "Did it kick yet?"

"Eh?" I asked, completely confused.

"Did it kick? The baby? I had a dream last night that you felt your baby kick for the first time and I think it might've been a premonition--"

"Slow down Koga." I replied, nodding in greeting to Mitobe. "No it hasn't."

"Maybe it will later, a Christmas miracle!"

He calmed down when Kiyoshi came to find out what all the yelling was about, the calm didn't last long as Takao dragged Midorima through the door. I had a habit of stroking the bump when talking to people, everyone seemed to find it endearing and Koganei kept getting his hopes up that I'd feel something.

"So you've really popped huh." Takao remarked, leaning over the back of the couch as Midorima got reacquainted with Kise and Kuroko, staying clear of the mistletoe.

"Yeah." I replied. "I'd like to blame Kagami's cooking partly though."

Kasamatsu snorted. "That kind of thing would hardly affect it."

"Sock-senpai how would you know?"

"You!" Kasamatsu suddenly seemed to remember who started his nickname as he vaulted over the couch and chased Takao into the kitchen. I watched as Kise ran after the captain, Kagami started yelling in the kitchen and then we heard a thud of some sort combined with Takao giggling.

The rest of the first years from Seirin arrived with Riko, it was getting a little cramped but the alcohol was starting to come out now, Hyuuga brought me a can of soda to start with, saying that Kagami would sort out something more 'fun' when he was done yelling at people in the kitchen. I nodded and thanked him, getting interrogated by Riko before I turned it back on her.

"So we know you have a mate Riko." I stated, gaining Kuroko's attention. "Spill it, who's the lucky soul?"

"Eh? H-How did you know?" She blushed, hiding her face in her drink.

"I'm not pack mother for nothing." I replied. "I've noticed you taking more interest in your phone, being surprisingly prompt about practice ending, even giving us days off unexpectedly."

She refused to say, I figured that it would only be a matter of time. The door buzzer went again and another miracle joined the fray complete with his best friend.

"Aominecchi!" Kise called to the ace as Momoi dashed in and planted a kiss on Riko's cheek. I raised an eyebrow at our coach before she showed me her middle finger.

"Kuroko you owe me 300 yen." I stated to the shadow with a smile.

"Izuki!" Riko exclaimed.

All jokes aside, I started becoming the centre of attention again as Momoi looked at me with bright eyes and smiled. "So you're the one who's--"

"Yes." I replied quickly, already anticipating what she was going to ask. "About three months."

She squealed, kneeling down and asking if she could feel the bump, at first I was hesitant but she was Riko's omega so I guessed there was no harm really. I lifted up my sweater and guided her hand to the top of the bump covered only by my thin shirt, she splayed her fingers as she smiled a little wider, glancing at Riko before pulling her hand away.

"You're really lucky." She told me, moving to sit between Riko and I, bringing her legs up underneath her pleated skirt. "To have such supportive mates and so many friends around to help you out."

I nodded, glancing to Koganei as I stroked the bump. Even if it was exhausting to be the centre of attention most days, I was thankful that so many of my friends were always willing to drop everything and be there for me if I needed them to.

 

\---

 

"Kaga-chin we bought the cake." Murasakibara announced as him and Himuro arrived.

"Cake?" The lounge chorus repeated like a flock of parrots.

Himuro laughed at the response. "Yes, cake."

Kagami raised an eyebrow at his brother, taking the box from the ace and peeking inside, he seemed happy with whatever the Yousen players had bought for the occasion, although it wasn't beyond the bounds of possibility that the ace had baked it himself. There was only one more miracle set to arrive, Furihata was getting more restless by the minute - the alcohol probably wasn't helping - and Kise was trying to convince the rest of the company to play charades with him until the captain arrived.

"You're so bad at it though." Aomine sighed. "You never make it simple enough to guess."

"Do not! You're just dumb Aominecchi."

"Hey!"

Midorima sighed heavily, adjusting his glasses as Takao sprawled out across his lap giggling. Momoi rolled her eyes and shook her head as Aomine and Kise continued to bicker.

"Just humour him." Kasamatsu chuckled, I raised an eyebrow at the relaxed alpha as Kise stuck out his tongue to the other miracle.

"Get on with it then." Aomine waved to Kise. "And don't get pouty if we can't guess."

The blond stood in the limited floor space and held up two fingers. Tapping his nose and pointing to the red tinsel on the tree for the first clue.

"Smells like tinsel?" Takao grinned as Kise shook his head and repeated his actions.

"...red." Momoi murmured as Kise pointed to the tinsel for the third time, he nodded and tapped his nose again. "Red nose?"

He beamed and gave her a thumbs up as he held up two fingers again, signalling for the second clue, before imitating a bull about to charge.

"Red nosed cow." Aomine stated in a bored tone.

"No baka." Kagami called from the doorway where he had been watching. "Red nosed reindeer."

Kise smiled at the ace. "You got it Kagamicchi, your turn!"

"Uh no, I have food to be cooking."

He made his hasty exit. Takao jumped up and declared he'd have a go instead. We watched as he pretended to shoot a basket, rubbing the bridge of his nose and making to wrap his hand up with invisible tape. It was pretty obvious who he was imitating.

"Midorima-kun." Kuroko spoke.

"What?" The ace replied, not quite understanding at first. "Oh--"

Takao laughed. "You didn't recognise your own shooting style?"

"Like you could properly copy it." He huffed.

A few more rounds were played, each getting more and more heated as frustration set in on both sides. Eventually the game was abandoned as the miracles seemed to be deep in conversation about something, hushed whispers and the sound of Aomine sighing heavily were intriguing, Takao was privileged enough to be caught in the middle of the debate and quickly filled in the gaps.

"So how do you feel about a puppy?" He whispered.

"What?"

"They're getting Kuroko a puppy."

"Why?" I asked.

He shrugged at first. "Something about part Christmas present, part apology present. Aomine and Akashi thought of it, apparently they feel bad for the last three years of conflict between them and Kuroko so the miracles have all pitched in and adopted a puppy."

"So that's why Akashi is running late?" I smiled, glancing at Furihata who was glued to his phone, Fukuda and Kawahara were trying to get him more involved with the festivities but the brunette was getting more anxious. I called him over, shoving Takao along the couch slightly to make room for the small omega. "What's up?"

"Nothing." He replied.

"Don't lie to your pack mother." Takao chirped.

Furihata smiled weakly. "Where's Sei?"

I ruffled his hair. "He'll be here don't worry."

He didn't seem convinced, I wrapped an arm around him and pulled him into a hug. Thankfully, distraction came as Kagami declared that he was done cooking, opening the kitchen door to let the wonderful aromas waft into the lounge.

 

\---

 

"Do we get cake now?" Koganei asked Himuro as the various serving plates and bowls were cleared away. Mitobe rolled his eyes and tugged the other onto his lap, making a point to his mate to calm down. Kiyoshi had joined me on the couch as Takao returned to Midorima's company, we had both been keeping a careful eye on Furihata as Akashi was still delayed. The kitchen had fallen quiet, Kagami deciding he wanted to relax and focus on socialising than sorting out dessert. The drinks were still being poured, I was beginning to feel tired until a glass was pressed into my hand.

"Don't worry, it's just a smoothie." Hyuuga told me when I gave him a conflicted expression. "Drink up, I think Akashi's about to make an appearance."

I snorted slightly, accepting the glass and sipping eagerly. Kiyoshi pressed a kiss to my cheek as the conversation picked up again. With everyone fed, most of the conversation turned to middle school tales, mainly from the miracles regarding their first year together and how Murasakibara made himself slightly ill by eating too many candy canes. Himuro was quick to remark about how things hardly change, launching into a story about the budget of Yousen's basketball club came to be mainly down to the ace's snack habits.

"Don't get me started." Midorima sighed. "Teikou's was the same."

"Ours goes to buying your lucky items though Shin-chan." Takao smirked.

"No it does not."

"Otsubo-senpai would disagree~"

"What about Seirin? Do you have any outrageous expense claims?" Himuro asked Hyuuga.

"Kagami tends to run up a bill at Maji burger." Our captain murmured. "But no we don't have any massive claims."

"We have bigger concerns anyway." Koganei declared, I felt myself blush as he launched into a speech about how our pack was growing and all of them would be god fathers.

"Shut up." Kiyoshi playfully stated as Mitobe covered Koganei's mouth with his hand.

Aomine and Kise exchanged an amused glance as the door buzzer sounded and Kagami answered it with a grumble. The Rakuzan captain entered with a soft smile, carrying a box with a blue bow on top. Furihata stood up quickly and caught the other's eye as Aomine quickly got to his feet and took the box carefully from Akashi.

"You took your time." The Touou ace hissed. Akashi raised an eyebrow and shrugged off his jacket, quickly making his way to Furihata and taking his hand.

"My apologies for being late." He murmured, kissing the brunette's hand.

Furihata was silent for a moment, smiling and blushing as he nodded. "I-It's okay Sei."

Kise couldn't contain himself. "Akashicchi~ Look up."

The captain glanced at the lighting fixture, the mistletoe that Kise had bought and set up was finally getting recognition, he looked back at Furihata with a small smile before gently drawing the other closer. It was a small peck but enough to turn Furihata into a blushing mess in Akashi's hold.

Aomine cleared his throat loudly, still holding the box Akashi had bought with him. "Can we get on with this Akashi?"

"Ah yes, that gift for Tetsuya." The other replied, caressing Furihata's red cheek as he glanced back at the ace. "You and Ryouta can do the honours."

Kise beamed as he stood up and turned to Kuroko. "So we're gonna get yelled at for this but we don't care." He told the shadow. "But we all wanted to get you a present this year."

Aomine carefully picked his way through the crowd to put the box at Kuroko's feet. "We felt bad for how we all acted after--"

"We? You mean _you_." Kise interrupted, getting a slight scowl from Aomine.

"Technically it was all of us." Midorima added. "Just Aomine more."

"Mine-chin and Aka-chin." Murasakibara murmured around a candy cane he had stolen from the tree.

"The point is--" Aomine regained control of the situation. "--we wanted to apologise Tetsu. And we figured that words only patch up the wounds so much, when I bought it up to Akashi after the Winter Cup we spoke to your captain and we all agreed on this gift."

I glanced at Hyuuga. "You knew?" I breathed.

"Yeah. You'll see why." He whispered.

Kuroko was looking at his two team-mates with mild curiosity and amusement. "Oh really."

"We all chipped in and got you this." Aomine replied with a genuine smile, he lifted the lid of the box and a small ball of fur stirred, sitting up and staring at Kuroko with bright blue eyes.

Kagami was the first to react. "Oh hell no, you did _not_ get him a puppy."

"Learn to live with it Taiga." Akashi smirked. "He's house trained and can be trained to be perfectly fine with families."

Kuroko smiled, scooping up the puppy, at first glance it looked like a husky but it could've easily been a cross-breed. The puppy licked at his chin and barked, tail wagging enthusiastically.

"The resemblance is uncanny." Riko remarked, Momoi giggled as both Kuroko and the dog looked at her. "So what's his name?"

Akashi shrugged. "It's a rescue dog, they said because he's so young he can be taught to respond to a new name."

"Nigou." Kiyoshi stated. "Number two."

"If that's the case then he needs his own jersey." Fukuda added.

I smiled, a puppy and a baby, this pack was definitely growing. The day was drawing on, Nigou got held and cuddled by everyone, eventually being dropped in Kiyoshi's lap next to me as Kagami decided we could get on with dessert now that Akashi was here. The puppy was very excitable but didn't quite bound around like I expected he would, Kiyoshi held him carefully and let me ruffle his fur, the blue eyes stared at me as he licked my hand and sniffed my bump.

"Better get used to that." I murmured, stroking the bump. "He won't leave you alone when you're born."

Hyuuga's hand covered mine as he sat down, receiving the puppy from Kiyoshi and smiling at how the ball of fur wriggled in his grasp and tried to get closer to my bump.

"I think he likes that idea already." Kiyoshi chuckled, nuzzling my neck as we watched the puppy curiously sniffing my hand on my bump. It was so slight but it caught me off guard, the small tap against the palm of my hand as Nigou let out a small bark. I stared at the puppy as he wriggled in Hyuuga's grasp.

"What's wrong?" Hyuuga asked, noting my puzzled expression.

"I-I think I felt it move." I murmured. "The baby."

He quickly handed Nigou to Kuroko before placing his hand on me, Kiyoshi watched as I bit my lip. Had I imagined it?

"Hey little one..." Hyuuga whispered. "Don't tease us like that."

Koganei had taken note of the activity and asked for Nigou back, bringing the puppy over to me again. "Maybe the baby likes Nigou?"

I was ready to laugh but as the little furry nose pressed against my hand, I felt it again, the small tap that was slightly stronger than the last. Kiyoshi smiled as he read my expression, ruffling Nigou's fur as he chuckled.

"Well that answers that question." He remarked, nodding for Kuroko to take his puppy back. "I think we have a dog lover."

There were a few more kicks, I couldn't help but be surprised each time, both Hyuuga and Kiyoshi managed to catch the little movements and just stared at each other in awe. We were in our own little world as the rest of our company kept drinking and mingling, Kagami bought in the impressive cake that the Yousen pair had provided; a mainly chocolate cake topped with white icing and little marzipan stars.

"Does the cake taste good?" Murasakibara asked us, I hadn't really spoken to the ace so it caught me off guard slightly.

"Yeah, it's great." I smiled.

"I made it with baby in mind." He admitted, Himuro smiled and nodded at me confirming the ace's confession. "Not too much sugar, proper icing, fruit..."

"Thank-you...I-I don't know what to say." I replied.

"Don't worry about it." Himuro said. "Atsushi has a soft spot for kids, considering he still acts like one."

"Shut up Muro-chin..." The giant mumbled around his spoon.

Himuro laughed, lightly nudging the other. I started feeling tired again, curling up in Hyuuga's hold as the others got more lively with their conversations, although it was getting late and some of them would have to leave soon to get home before the last trains ran. The pair from Yousen were actually the first to go, Himuro hugging Kagami and the two of them smiling as they swore they'd have another match soon. The miracles bided farewell to their tallest member with a loud goodbye and a drunk Kise tripping over Kawahara in his haste to hug the other. Kasamatsu rolled his eyes as he pried his omega away from Murasakibara so the other could leave. The blond giggled and pointed out they were under the mistletoe.

"Hey Y-Yukio, I think we should both be naughty this year and save Santa the trip." He murmured, pressing his lips to the captain's - who did nothing to stop him but didn't exactly encourage the behaviour.

Takao saw an opportunity and took it with a slightly more flustered Midorima. "Hey Shin-chan, what do you say we make this a Not-so-Silent Night?" He suggested.

"T-Takao!" The ace replied. "We're in Kagami's apartment and you're suggesting we d-do--"

"I meant later." Takao chuckled. "My parents are on a cruise and my sister's at my aunt's so my house is empty~"

I buried my face in Hyuuga's sweater, chuckling slightly at the horrendous pick-up lines that were being tossed around. Koganei had calmed down considerably and was quickly falling asleep in Mitobe's lap, Kawahara and Fukuda decided to take their leave as Furihata was tightly wrapped in Akashi's embrace. Riko and Momoi left too, our coach making sure to tell me not to pig out too much on Kagami's Christmas cooking, before Momoi told me to ignore her and eat as much as I wanted.

Hyuuga stroked my bump, the kicks had ceased around the time the Yousen pair left as I had assumed that we wouldn't hear from the baby again tonight. Aomine asked if he could crash here tonight, Kagami first said no - he was still annoyed that the miracles had bought Kuroko a puppy - but when Aomine made a protest about Kagami being Scrooge if he kicked him out on the street on Christmas Eve, Kagami sighed and told him that he could as long as he helped clean up in the kitchen.

I must've dozed off as I woke up to find most of the others gone and the lights dimmed. Akashi was awake with Furihata cuddled up to him on the other couch, they were murmuring quietly to each other, the captain slowly carding his hand through the other's hair and pressing a kiss to Furihata's forehead. Aomine and Kagami were in the kitchen having a conversation about street-ball and Kuroko was teasing Nigou with dog treats.

"Good evening." Kiyoshi remarked, ruffling my hair as I leaned against Hyuuga. "Nice sleep?"

I blinked a few times, moving to sit up. "Yeah, what time is it?"

"Nearly ten. Taiga's making us all some hot chocolate and then we're going to bed."

I gestured to the other pair in the room. "Are they staying?"

"Yeah. Akashi said he'd rather stay here and go home tomorrow sometime. Furi didn't feel comfortable taking him to meet his family though so we figured they could take one couch and Aomine would take the other."

"Cool..." I murmured. "As long as they don't try anything."

Hyuuga chuckled. "I think Aomine's good at killing the mood."

"I heard that!" The ace remarked, walking into the room with a tray of mugs and a bag of marshmallows.

"Shut up, you're in Seirin's territory now." Kagami replied, playfully shoving the other's shoulder.

I was handed a warm mug, the aroma of chocolate was a comforting one. In comparison to the excitable mood that the day had been filled with, the more relaxed and sleepy atmosphere was welcoming. Nigou was fast asleep when we finished and decided to head to bed, Kiyoshi kissed the top of my head and told me he'd go and get the bed warmed up before I moved from Hyuuga's hold. Kuroko was actually on the verge of falling asleep as Kagami hesitantly picked up the snoozing puppy from his lover's lap. Aomine couldn't help but laugh at the other ace as he held the puppy as far away from him as possible, Furihata and Akashi watched with amusement as Nigou was carefully placed in a nest of blankets made up for him, but the ace scooping up Kuroko with ease prompted the puppy to wake up with a startled whine.

"Really..." Kagami sighed as he looked at the dog. "You want to follow him everywhere?"

Nigou yawned and jumped out of the blankets to follow Kagami.

"Fine." Kagami grumbled. "I'll see you all tomorrow then."

The door closed quietly, we were actually impressed how well Kagami was dealing with his fear of dogs. Aomine yawned and cleared away the empty mugs, giving Akashi a slight smirk as he did so. Hyuuga gently eased me to sit up, I was more than ready to go to sleep as I stood up and smiled at Furihata.

"Right, you and I both know that if you two do anything indecent on that couch, I'm going to know." I told him.

"Yes _mom_." He giggled. "We promise we won't do anything--"

"Damn straight." Aomine uttered. "I'm not falling asleep to the sound of you two fucking."

"You sleep like a log anyway, we'll just wait til you're asleep."

Aomine scoffed. "Nothing will get past me."

"It has before. You were just too out of it to hear." Akashi stated, pressing a kiss to Furihata's forehead as he glanced at me. "Don't worry, I promise we won't do anything inappropriate."

I raised an eyebrow before Hyuuga kissed my cheek and told me to stop babying the freshmen. With another glance at the two love-birds on the couch I nodded and sighed, letting him take me by the hand and lead me into the bedroom. Kiyoshi was already in bed, pulling me close as I led down. His hand ghosted over my bump as Hyuuga turned out the light and joined us.

"Merry Christmas love." He whispered.

I covered his hand with mine, Hyuuga sighing as he also found our hands. "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, I love you both." I breathed.

Our captain hummed, drawing the blankets up over us. "We love you too Shun."

It was easy to fall asleep, cocooned by my two alphas in the darkness. It wasn't even officially Christmas yet but so far it had been the best Christmas ever; being around our close friends and pack, feeling our baby kick for the first time, a puppy being added to our ever-growing pack. The next day would involve visiting my family and Kiyoshi's grandparents for lunch, then possibly visiting Hyuuga's in the late afternoon before spending a quieter evening in with our house-mates and whoever happened to be around.

It would be the last Christmas to be a kid, for next year would be a different story.

 


	18. Family ties

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I was going to update like half a week ago but SOMEBODY *glares at laptop* had other ideas, in that my laptop decided to start crashing every 30 seconds and had to be completely rebuilt - thankfully I was able to save a lot of my documents including this fic beforehand - in two days. So we can all thank my father and his knowledge of computing for getting me back online within 72 hours of everything going to shit.
> 
> Anyway, now I have a clean slate - computing wise - we shouldn't have anymore problems!~

"Are you sure you don't want anymore?" My mother asked, trying to give me another helping of rice. "I want to make sure you're well fed."

"Yes!" I repeated. "Trust me, I'm well fed at Kagami's."

Kiyoshi chuckled, I sighed as Mai eagerly accepted the spoonful of rice. We weren't very traditional in my family when it came to Christmas, although we did exchange gifts and had a meal together, it was never quite like a western Christmas. Due to the impending birth, we invited Kiyoshi's grandparents to the family meal so we didn't have to travel too much, they were more than happy to meet their great-grandchild's extended family and to see Hyuuga again.

"Teppei, tell him that he needs to eat." My mother chided playfully.

I pouted at Kiyoshi and leaned against Hyuuga, the captain shot Kiyoshi an unimpressed look as he ruffled my hair and kissed my temple.

"Can't, sorry." Kiyoshi shrugged. "He's telling the truth, our house-mate does keep him well fed."

"Nothing beats a mother's cooking though." His grandmother replied. "Shun have you thought about learning to cook properly? The little one will need bento boxes and snacks eventually."

"Yay onii-chan can make me bento!" Mai exclaimed, tipping her bowl of rice over in the process.

"Can you imagine Kagami making bento boxes?" Hyuuga uttered to me, making me laugh at the mental image of our ace in a frilly apron.

"Shuttup." I hissed, elbowing him with a smile.

"You know he'd love it."

"Junpei!"

We managed to get through the rest of the meal without but more hassle, retreating to the lounge where Mai kept pestering me to let her 'feel the baby'. She splayed her small hand over my bump, murmuring quietly as she hoped to feel the slightest bit of movement.

"Can it hear me?" She asked, interrupting the current conversation about how to correctly cook a stir fry - a controversial topic it seemed between the two families - and pouting at me. "I can't hear it."

I chuckled, ruffling her hair slightly. "Yeah, the baby just prefers to listen."

She smiled, pressing her cheek against my bump. "Is it a boy or a girl?"

"We don't know, it's going to be a surprise." I told her, watching as her eyes widened. "What do you think it is?"

I became aware that everyone was watching this exchange, I didn't mind too much, not when Mai looked so adorably thoughtful.

"...I don't know." She murmured. "What do you think it is?"

I laughed, glancing at Hyuuga who was sat next to me. "You got any ideas?"

He seemed caught off guard at my question, face flushing red as the room's attention focused on him. "I-uh...no."

Mai continued to babble to my bump, she seemed to be asking it over and over again if it was a boy or a girl and occasionally 'can you hear me?'. I found it quite endearing, Kiyoshi was watching from across the room with a soft smile occasionally replying to whatever remark Aya made but his attention was definitely focused on us. I gently stroked my sister's head, smiling at her as she kept her hand splayed on me.

"We should probably get going, my parents will be expecting us soon." Hyuuga murmured to me.

"Yeah, is Teppei coming or not?" I knew that his parents still weren't overly on-board with this entire thing so it would probably be better if it was just the two of us.

He shrugged. "He can if he wants, my parents don't really remember him like they remember you so I dunno how well they'd take it."

Mai sat upright quickly, her hand was still splayed on my bump as she looked at me with a startled expression.

"Mai?" I asked, already with an idea of what caused her to bolt upright.

"I felt it!" She beamed. "I felt it kick onii-chan!"

I laughed. "Did you? Wow you're one of the lucky ones." I glanced briefly at Hyuuga with a smile.

"I am?!"

"Yeah, not many people have felt it kick."

She seemed over the moon, smiling and giggling as she repeated 'I'm lucky' over and over. I got an eye roll from my mother as I encouraged her, Hyuuga smiled at Mai and declared that we had to get going. After a bit of debating, it was decided that Kiyoshi would head back to the apartment to make sure it was still in one peace - Kuroko and Kagami were in an intense debate about how to properly make coffee when we left - whilst I'd go with Hyuuga. Just before we left my mother took me aside and gave me the same old lecture about eating healthily and making sure not to strain myself.

"Mom, I played an entire tournament whilst pregnant. I think I can handle the last few weeks." I told her, taking her hands in mine.

"That's what I'm talking about Shun." She sighed, taking my face in her hands. "You're very active so make sure you're not over-exerting yourself. You have two boyfriends and god knows how many friends who are more than willing to help out, take a few days to rest and let them take care of you Hun."

I smiled. "I will, don't worry. I'm sure if Teppei has his way I won't be leaving the apartment now until the baby is born."

She chuckled. "Don't go _that_ far. Just be careful, also I'll pop around just after the New Year to drop off some things to help you with the birth."

I nodded. "Thanks, well I better get going. Hyuuga's parents are...slightly more highly strung than our family."

She kissed my forehead, slowly stroking my bump with a smile before gesturing for me to follow the others out the door. Kiyoshi made sure we were both okay before starting to walk in the opposite direction to Hyuuga's house, he told us to call when we were heading home so he could make sure the apartment was in order. We nodded and started the reasonably short walk to Hyuuga's home, the air was cool but not bitter. We could see our breath but the lack of a breeze kept the chill away, the weak sunlight gave everything a small glow, it was a miracle it hadn't snowed this year although the season was barely half over so there was still plenty of time to wake up to a blanket of snow over everything.

"What if they don't like me?" I asked, squeezing his hand.

"They will." He replied.

"But...they're very-- you know. They don't really approve of..." I trailed off, not sure what exactly I was trying to say.

He stopped walking, getting me to face him on the side-walk, a bird chirped in the distant trees, unfazed by the lack of other birds, its song floating through the air as Hyuuga's hand stroked my cheek.

"They're still polite people. Even if they don't approve, they won't shut you out." He murmured. "We don't have to stay long, just a little while. I promise."

I smiled weakly, still feeling torn up inside. I had met his family back in middle school and the odd occasion in our freshmen year, before all of this happened, and even then I felt that they were a close-knit family that didn't really like change. Although I did see where Hyuuga got his hard-working nature from; his father owning a business and mother always pushing him to be the best he could be, it was admirable but also slightly terrifying when they'd potentially see me jeopardizing their son's future.

 

\---

 

For someone who didn't do well in times of courage, Hyuuga was handling this very well. I sat on the couch gaze flicking between my hands in my lap and his younger brother who was sat on the opposite couch. The siblings had their family resemblance, mainly the hair and glasses but the captain's younger brother was a bit more reserved than him, he had hardly said a word since we arrived, instead he had been watching me with interest as Hyuuga answered all the intrusive questions on my behalf.

"So is it a boy or girl?" His mother asked, she was a calm person but I could definitely pick up on some alpha vibes from her, I was reminded of Mitobe when I looked at her, the kind face but a sharp mind that wasn't resting any time soon. She wasn't rude or arrogant, more protective and impulsive.

_Like someone else I know_.

"We declined to find out." Hyuuga replied. "We wanted it to be a surprise."

"Well that's hardly useful. I bet you haven't picked names yet."

"No we haven't, we're leaving it until closer to the time."

I was feeling more and more like a burden, I knew they didn't consider me one but it was hard to think any different in that moment, I worried my bottom lip between my teeth and kept quiet.

"Okay, so how are you paying for this child?" His father asked, he was somewhat more approachable but I still didn't feel totally at ease. "Kids cost money."

Hyuuga didn't actually have an answer, I took his hand in mine and squeezed it. He had vaguely touched on the subject before and a potential solution but he hadn't mentioned it to his parents yet.

"I--uh." Hyuuga uttered, I squeezed his hand again, offering reassurance. "I was wondering actually dad, if you needed any help in the shop?"

For a moment, no-one said anything. Hyuuga's parents looked at each other before his dad chuckled slightly. "Nice to see that you're at least _thinking_ straight, even if you aren't..." He trailed off. "I think I can find some afternoon shifts to do son, not much but it'll be something."

With the exception of the small comment regarding our sexuality, the tension in the room seemed to ease slightly, although it wasn't any more comfortable at least the mood felt a little lighter.

"Kazuki, go get some tea." Hyuuga's mother nudged her second son. The boy broke his gaze on me and padded out of the room without a word.

When he returned with the tray of ornate cups, I immediately felt a little better sipping the warm beverage, cradling the cup in my hands. I tried not to draw attention to myself, Hyuuga's parents made me feel on edge and I really didn't want to be the center of attention here. The clock on the wall declared it was a little after four, we had been here for just over forty-five minutes and I was getting more restless.

"Are you okay?" Hyuuga whispered as his mother was distracted by clearing the cups away and walking out into the kitchen.

"Your brother keeps staring at me." I breathed, giving him a nervous glance.

He snorted, ruffling my hair before turning to look at his brother. "What?" He asked.

"Huh?" The younger male replied. "What?"

"You keep staring." Hyuuga remarked, taking my hand in his again. "Why?"

"So? It's not exactly everyday that my brother brings his _pregnant_ omega home." The venom in his voice was clear, it reminded me vaguely of Hanamiya but this wasn't a sadistic sense of humour, this was genuine disgust.

Hyuuga squeezed my hand as he glared at his brother. "Kazuki, I know it's a lot to take in--"

"A lot?! Two months ago you came out as gay and now you're...he's..." His brother seemed a lot more lively as he stood up and ran a hand through his hair. "Forgive me, but 'a lot' is an understatement onii-san."

"You'll understand when you're older--"

"Like hell I will!" Kazuki snapped, glaring at his older brother. "Because I'm not like you _Junpei_ I'll be able to control myself."

I swallowed, Hyuuga looked to his father before fixing his gaze on his brother. "That shows how much you know." He uttered, I could sense that he was holding his rage back for the sake of keeping the peace.

I felt like a fly on the wall, my gaze travelled from one sibling to the other. I could feel the tension rising between them as I cleared my throat.

"I'm the one who couldn't control myself." I stated, looking Kazuki in the eye as I squeezed Hyuuga's hand. "Jun--your brother didn't have to do anything, but he did because _I asked him to_. So quit being a brat and learn a thing or two about consent, because at least your brother had the decency in him to ask for it which is _more_ than I can say for other alphas I know."

Even I was surprised at my outburst, but I could only sit by for so long and let this happen. I expected his parents to lash out at me but the opposite happened.

"You heard him. Now apologise." Their father stated, giving his youngest son a stern look.

Kazuki glared at me, I felt his hatred growing before he uttered an apology and then asked to be excused. As soon as he was out of the room I sighed heavily, Hyuuga wrapped an arm around me and pressed a light kiss to my forehead. I tuned out of the rest of the conversation, I gathered that it was finalising details about when Hyuuga would start working at the shop, before he decided that we could leave.

"I'm sorry about Kazuki. He's highly-strung sometimes, I hope he didn't upset you." Their father said as he shook my hand.

"It's okay." Hyuuga replied. "Thanks for at least hearing us out. I-I know you and mom aren't really comfortable with this--"

His father put up a hand to silence the captain. "We know, but this is your life so we'll try and support you the best we can. It's good that you have each other and your friends, we'll keep in touch and come and see the baby when it's born yeah?"

I nodded, Hyuuga smiled and abruptly hugged his father before ushering me to follow him out the door, I waved in parting as we stepped out into the chill again. We had walked for a few moments when he suddenly put his jacket around me, citing that I needed to stay warm and that he'd be okay. I smiled, clinging to the jacket as he called ahead to Kiyoshi.

 

\---

 

"Why is Akashi still here?" Hyuuga asked as we walked into the warm apartment. The Rakuzan captain was looking rather comfortable on the couch with Furihata in his embrace.

"Because the trains don't run on Christmas day." Kagami shrugged, drying one of the plates he had been washing up. "Also something about him not wanting to go home yet."

"And Furi?" Hyuuga continued.

"He wants to stay with Sei."

I didn't see a problem with it really, however I had noted the slight scent change and called Furihata into the bedroom. He seemed a little nervous as I closed the door and folded my arms across my chest.

"Yeah?" He asked, rubbing his hands together in the slightly colder room.

"Show me your neck." I told him, stepping forward and gesturing for him to mirror my action. He nodded, letting me take his face gently and tilt his head from side to side, there was no mark to speak off but I could definitely smell Akashi on him.

"W-We didn't do anything I swear!" He murmured. "We've just been cuddling all day--"

I put a hand on his shoulder and stepped back. "Relax...I just wanted to know."

"You could've asked..." He grumbled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"True, but I know from experience that sometimes you might feel weird talking about it." I smiled. "Sorry for making you worry...I'm still getting used to the pack mother thing y'know? Sometimes I just go a bit tunnel-vision."

He smiled and nodded. "It's okay. Hey, um do you mind us staying? I-I don't want to take him back to my family yet but he doesn't want to go home--"

I shrugged. "As long as you both remember you're not the only ones living here I don't think we'll mind. Clear it with Taiga though yeah?"

My tiredness was beginning to take hold as he returned to Akashi, Kiyoshi encouraged me to sit with him on the couch, Nigou was scampering around the apartment after a mini basketball as I leaned into my lover's hold. Kuroko seemed to be wrapped up in something on his phone whilst Akashi pressed a chaste kiss to Furihata's cheek, comparing the captain I saw now to the one I faced on the court over a month ago was strange, it really was like they were two different people. Nigou bounded over to us and jumped into my lap, sniffing around my bump and nuzzling my hand before yipping and wagging his tail.

"What is it?" I sighed, scratching his ear with my free hand. "I think it's asleep."

Kiyoshi's hand slowly joined mine, kissing the shell of my ear as he moved to kneel on the floor next to the couch. He tenderly pressed his forehead against my bump, smiling as he splayed his fingers.

"Hey little one." He murmured. "Are you awake? You've had a long day and a lot of people are eager to see you."

I noted how Kuroko's attention was captured by this display, he smiled and took Kiyoshi's spot on the couch, picking up Nigou and letting me wrap an arm around his shoulders, Akashi and Furihata were also watching intently as Kiyoshi continued to speak quietly.

"We can't wait to meet you, you're gonna be well-loved by us all. You might hate all the attention at first but you'll get used to it." Kiyoshi continued. "But don't worry if you still don't like it, I'm sure your mom will be fiercely protective of you and send people away."

I snorted. "Don't forget about Junpei."

Kiyoshi chuckled. "That too, don't worry little one, he's not as bad as people say. He'll probably spoil you rotten and you'll have him wrapped around your little finger, I know I won't be able to resist your smile either. Your mom will probably yell at us a lot for it but that's because if she didn't then who knows what'll happen."

"She?" I repeated. "I'm a female now?"

He shrugged. "I'm not exactly gonna call you omega am I?"

I shook my head and laughed. "I suppose..." I covered his hand with mine. "Can we go to bed soon? I'm exhausted."

He nodded, pressing a light kiss to my bump and going to find Hyuuga, I glanced at Kuroko and got two sets of bright blue eyes staring at me. Nigou nuzzled my bump again and whined slightly, I moved my hand to where he was sniffing and felt the small sign of life that had startled me yesterday, this baby certainly was a dog-lover. My gaze flickered to Furihata and Akashi, the brunette seemed to be half asleep already as Akashi stroked his back and kissed his hand, I found myself smiling as Hyuuga tapped my shoulder and offered me his hand.

"We still need to give you your present." He told me as I stood up.

"P-Present..." I repeated, realisation hit me as I remembered that I hadn't actually gotten them anything. The chaos of the last few weeks had completely taken over my mind and I had forgotten to buy them gifts.

"Don't look so worried." He chuckled. "You'll love it."

We said goodnight to the others before getting into the bedroom. I quickly got changed and sat in the middle of the bed, Hyuuga joined me and kissed my bare shoulder before readjusting the old jersey so I was more covered. I smiled and looked at Kiyoshi as he held a small package in his hand, he sat on the other side of me and handed it to me. I tugged on the silver ribbon and unwrapped the blue paper from the small booklet of cardboard rectangles.

"What is it?" I whispered, pulling the last of the paper away to reveal the top one; _'Love me' coupons_.

Kiyoshi chuckled, gesturing for me to flick through them. I raised an eyebrow but obliged, they were fairly amusing to say the least, ranging from simple kind gestures like _'one back massage from Kiyoshi'_ and _'Dessert of your choice at dinner'_ to some that would come in handy after the birth; _'One night alone with alpha of your choosing whilst the other babysits'_ and _'Day out with a best friend - baby free'_.

"How many are there?" I asked, flicking through the pile.

"At least twenty." Hyuuga replied. "We just thought that they'd come in handy y'know. You can use them as often as you like, there's no expiry date or limit to how many times you can use them."

"Except maybe next Christmas when we rewrite them." Kiyoshi remarked.

I kissed them both in thanks before confessing that it had completely slipped my mind to buy them anything. They both told me it was okay, Kiyoshi pointing out that I had been put under a lot of pressure recently so they honestly weren't expecting anything.

"Seriously Shun, it's okay." Hyuuga murmured, fingers gently taking hold of the chain around my neck and finding the compass disc, reminding me of how sentimental they could both be. "We understand, we just wanted to show that we care."

"I still feel bad though..." I whispered. "I can't even give you sex--"

Kiyoshi's lips on mine silenced me, he pulled away with a smile before kissing Hyuuga too. "Stop worrying." He told me. "Just having you for a boyfriend is enough, especially right now when there's so much going on. You're giving us something much more precious than a night of sex--" His hand went to my bump and stroked it slowly. "--you're letting us be part of something special."

"You're so cheesy it's ridiculous." Hyuuga sighed, settling down in bed and coaxing me to lay with him as Kiyoshi turned out the light and put the coupons on the table. He kissed the back of my neck as he held me, hand finding mine and linking our fingers together. Our other lover chuckled, mindful of my bump as he gently lay closer to me and lightly caressed my cheek.

"But that's what makes this twice as fun."

Hyuuga snorted, burying his face in my hair and squeezing my hand. "I could think of more fun things."

Kiyoshi didn't reply, the steady breathing along with his still hand indicated he was already asleep. I sighed and let myself relax into Hyuuga's hold, he nuzzled my neck until I eventually fell asleep, feeling safe and warm surrounded by my two boyfriends.

 


	19. The past

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy new year everyone! So I'm trying to work how many many chapters I can fit this all into. Or how many filler chapters I need. Or both?
> 
> Either way, at some point this month I am going on a mini-hiatus because I've been going flat out since October and I'm starting to burn out slightly. I'll keep you guys posted on when that'll be, hopefully it'll be once this fic is done(ish) but if I have to have it sooner then...well that'll be what happens.
> 
> Also I experimented a little bit with the formatting in this chapter, hopefully it works out well, if it reads weirdly then let me know for future reference!

 

"You know, I like the name Katsu." Kiyoshi murmured.

"It means victory." I observed. "You're playing on the fact we won the Winter cup?"

He chuckled. "Yeah?"

"No."

Hyuuga declined to comment, he was having nothing to do with this 'chaos' that was Kiyoshi trying to get me to agree to names for the baby. I didn't exactly have any preferences but none of the suggestions so far felt right, considering the baby would take my family name, whatever first name we came up with had to fit well with mine.

"How about...no...certainly not...nope." He uttered, flicking through a book his grandmother gave him. "We know too many guys. Half these names are taken or sound too similar to...certain people."

"Example?" I hummed, not really paying attention.

"Makoto, Ryou, Shoichi...the name Ryouta and all its variants--" He looked at me, I had tensed at the mention of the Touou captain's name. "--what's up?"

I swallowed. Kuroko was sat on the other couch and had so far not commented, Kagami was too invested on his phone to get involved past suggesting we name it after 'our good friend who's letting us stay in his apartment for free' - which earned him a snort from Kuroko.

"You know, you never did come clean about your history with Moriyama." Kiyoshi continued, closing the book.

I nodded, my hands stroking my bump, I owed a lot to the Kaijou third year. Hyuuga raised an eyebrow as he processed the situation, deciding to remain quiet as he sat next to me on the couch. There was a somewhat uncomfortable silence, I figured that they were both expecting me to come clean just as I had promised Kiyoshi I would.

"Do you remember that day when both us and Kaijou went to Touou for practice matches? It was just before the Winter cup in freshman year." I murmured.

"Vaguely. I just remember that Teppei was in hospital so we were beaten easily." Hyuuga replied.

I nodded. "Well that's when it all happened."

~~~

_It was pretty hopeless without Kiyoshi, Touou was just too good for us so it was no surprise that we lost, I wasn't too beat up about it though, taking it on the chin as a good practice match. Kaijou were still playing the second string, as Hyuuga stormed off uttering about how it was all his fault I stayed to watch the closing minutes of play. The second years were certainly showing their seniors that they were serious about being on the team, I wasn't anticipating getting spoken to as I watched but that changed quickly._  
  
_A hand on my shoulder spooked me, I turned to find Imayoshi behind me. He was smiling as he told me that I played well in our match, that I had a lot of potential as a point guard. It was too loud in the gym to really have a conversation so he suggested that we take our 'chat' into the hallway. I didn't know where the rest of team Seirin were so I agreed, he was my senior after all so there was no reason to be suspicious. I guess I was being naive, I should've picked up on it sooner really._  
  
_He took me to a small hallway off the main one that serviced the locker rooms for each team, it was quiet and secluded which really should've been another warning but I just assumed this was one of those spots that students used to have more private conversations. It was only then that I started picking up on his scent, he was a newly presented alpha and from what I could tell he hadn't claimed an omega yet. He then asked me if I had presented yet, I said no. For a few moments he didn't say anything, he was just looking at me. I started feeling self-conscious and made to step away but he caged me against the wall, hand either side of my head and leaned closer to me. He nuzzled my neck and seemed to breathe in my scent before murmuring;_  
  
_"When you do, you better come and find me. Or better yet, I'll come find you and claim you as mine."_  
  
_It was a pretty terrifying situation to find myself in, I wasn't sure what to do, I wasn't sure what he was capable of or how he'd react to me trying to get away from him. Whilst I was panicking, he kissed my neck, I tried to push him away but he wouldn't budge, growling slightly at my resistance instead. I just tried to lean away from him as he pressed himself against me and said;_  
  
_"Do you feel that?"_  
  
_I was so fucking disgusted. He was laughing as I whimpered and shook my head. As I started thinking that maybe he was about to try and do something much worse, I heard footsteps and found some courage from somewhere, I don't know where, to call out to whoever it was. I don't remember what I said before Imayoshi covered my mouth but it was enough to spur them to approach. Turns out this hallway was close to the Kaijou locker room and it was one of the players that I heard. So Moriyama poked his head around the corner and saw everything, I locked eyes with him and he must've put two and two together because he then called back down the hallway for Kasamatsu and approached us. He pulled Imayoshi off me and shoved him away as Kasa arrived._  
  
_Kasa was left to deal with Imayoshi, Moriyama took me into the Kaijou changing room first to make sure I was okay, Kobori gave me some water and they were all really good about it. I managed to tell them most of what happened, they were all disgusted with his behavior and swore they'd tell his couch. I told them not to. The third years said that they were going to go and at least talk to the Touou captain about this, leaving me with the second years. When Kasa came back with a slap mark on his cheek and blood on his knuckles, he told me it was dealt with and that Imayoshi wouldn't approach me again. I don't care to know what he did._  
  
_Moriyama escorted me back to our locker room and helped me come up with a story to tell coach. Something about getting tips about shooting. I just felt that as we weren't gonna see Touou until inter-high it wasn't important. Kasa had dealt with it and Imayoshi didn't approach me again. I was shaken up still but I didn't want a scene to be caused, I just wanted to forget about it already._  
  
_However I had nightmares for a few weeks afterwards, I didn't want to tell the team because I knew they'd cause a scene so I ended up finding Moriyama again. We spoke a lot about it, he told me it wasn't my fault and that Imayoshi was a prick, that I had fallen into his trap and wasn't to blame. He helped me get over it, just by taking my mind off it._  
  
_We were close for a while, he even told me he had somewhat of a crush on me around Christmas time, I just never felt the same way. He took it well though, I was thankful for that. He made an effort to make sure I was okay after it all, he was really a good friend to me. That's why I wanted to talk to him at the Winter cup when we beat Kaijou, I wanted to make sure that he wasn't hurt by the recent events...I think he's moved on, but I guess he'll always have a soft spot for me..._

~~~

"Why didn't you tell us?" Hyuuga murmured, sounding hurt as I finished telling them what had happened. "We would've at least helped you out with the nightmares."

"And confronted him." I stated, looking into my captain's eyes. "You would've seen red and just...gone off to hunt him down yourself."

Kiyoshi squeezed my hand. "We understand." He told me, casting a warning glance to Hyuuga. "It must've been hard to get over it..."

"You are over it right? We haven't done anything to upset you have we?"

I shook my head. "I was over it by the time the freshmen arrived."

"You didn't answer my second question." Hyuuga murmured, pulling me into his hold and hugging me from behind, pressing a kiss to my neck. "Did we overstep the line?"

I smiled slightly. "No you didn't Junpei."

He exhaled, hugging me a little tighter. "Okay. And Moriyama--"

"I told you, he's not a threat. If anything he's the opposite."

There was a pause, Kiyoshi smiled at me and shuffled close so he could reach out and ruffle my hair, his hand falling and ghosting over my bump.

"Maybe we should let it decide on the name." He spoke quietly, changing the topic quickly.

"How?" I replied.

"You said it was more active than usual, it reacts to Nigou enough. We should just toss names back and forth and see if it reacts."

Hyuuga snorted, still holding onto me tightly. "Go for it. Try some girls names though, all I've heard so far are boys."

"You think we're having a girl?" Kiyoshi smiled.

Hyuuga shrugged. "It's a 50/50 split."

"Actually it depends who impregnated him." Kuroko remarked nonchalantly. "The larger the dick, the more likely it is for the baby to be male, but there are other factors that come into play too."

Kagami stared at his lover. "Tetsuya what the actual fuck?"

"You'd be surprised what kind of things we discussed in middle school." Kuroko shrugged as I laughed at Kagami's confused expression. "Midorima-kun wants to be a doctor, so naturally Aomine-kun and Kise-kun would ask him all sorts of weird questions until Akashi-kun threatened to cut their tongues off."

"Right...I forgot that you guys were weird as fuck." Kagami sighed, burying his face in his hands.

"Although he does raise an interesting point." Kiyoshi turned to Hyuuga and I.

"One we can ignore for a while longer." I stated, it had been gnawing away at the back of my mind along with a hundred other topics. It wouldn't really change how either of them acted around the baby but the question was going to keep being asked.

"We can't really find out yet anyway." Hyuuga murmured, sensing my discomfort on the subject.

"Not long though." Kiyoshi hummed, hand stroking my bump. "Three weeks?"

I nodded. "The doctor wants to see me next week sometime so we can decide on...things." I murmured. "And then I guess they'll want me in soon after that..."

Hyuuga kissed my neck and sighed. "It'll be okay, we'll stay with you as long as possible."

I didn't doubt that, what worried me was when they _had_ to leave me, I still hadn't picked an omega to stay with me and the days were counting down quickly. There was still a lot to do, we hadn't bought anything for the baby yet, although my mother was going to drop by with Aya and give us some of Mai's old stuff which we were thankful for, it took a little bit more off my mind. Kiyoshi decided that he was going to make a start on dinner, roping Hyuuga into helping so I could have some space. I told them I was going to lie down for a while because I was tired, I wasn't alone for long as Kuroko silently approached the bed and sat on the edge of the mattress.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

I groaned slightly, lying on my side was the only comfortable position but even then it wasn't exactly cloud nine. "My body aches."

He smiled slightly. "Not long now though."

"Kuroko?"

"Hm?"

"...can I ask you for a favour?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Would you mind being one of my birthing partners?"

He was silent for a few moments. "What about Koga-kun?"

I smiled. "I was thinking he'd be better suited for staying with Teppei and Junpei, they'll need someone to keep them calm. And they know you so I figured they'd be more comfortable if you were there..."

"You have someone else in mind too?" He shuffled closer, lying on his stomach and resting his head on his folded arms. "Who they don't know?"

"Takao. They know him enough but I don't want him to feel pressured so if you were there too then--"

He nodded quickly. "It's okay, sure I'll be there." He smiled. "I'm sure Taiga will be more than happy to stay home and out of the way."

I laughed. "Is he not up for hospitals?"

Kuroko shrugged. "Let's just say, two alphas climbing the walls is enough, having a third adding to the tension probably would do the opposite of helping."

"You have a point..." I trailed off, exhaling as I felt the baby kick a little harder than what I was used to. "Can't say that this one doesn't disagree with you there."

A small bark following by the hasty scuttling of paws prompted us to expect another visitor. Nigou struggled to get up on the bed at first but he was soon sniffing my bump as usual.

"Why is your puppy obsessed with my baby?" I remarked, playfully pushing the pup onto his back and ruffling his tummy fur.

"He's a baby himself. I suppose he senses it." Kuroko replied, poking Nigou's nose. "At least we won't have to worry about him being well behaved."

"As long as I don't find him in the crib, it'll be fine..." My hand moving back to my bump, I was only just getting used to the idea of being pregnant and it was nearly over, at least I'd have nearly eighteen years to get used to being a parent. That was another matter entirely.

Kuroko pulled Nigou closer to him, scratching the pup's ear as he silently watched me. "Would you have wanted to have a baby in a few years? Like if all of this hadn't had happened, would you have wanted to have one?"

I hummed, it was a possibility, I couldn't be sure though. I stifled a yawn, regardless of what all the pregnancy books and doctors said; I was exhausted so easily. Heck I hadn't left the apartment in a week, but by the late afternoon I was always ready to fall asleep. Kuroko had noticed over the past few days, whether it was his perception as the shadow or an omega thing, he had subtly suggested to both Hyuuga and Kiyoshi that they give me more space and so far they were keeping up with it. I was far from bedridden but it was the quietest part of the apartment for sure.

 

\---

 

"So me and Kuroko yeah?" Takao asked, sitting next to me on the bed. It was the last day before classes started again, I was going to get my work bought home with Kiyoshi and do my best to keep up whilst I was unable to attend school. I had called Takao over so we could read through the leaflet my doctor had given me about the whole 'giving birth' aspect of this crazy part of my life.

"Yep. And Koga will be with my alphas to try and keep them calm." I nodded to the brunette sat cross-legged on the end of the bed. "But he'll get access to the...uh...process so he can rely what's happening to them."

They both nodded, Kuroko closed the door behind him as he entered. We read through all the information, I felt uneasy as the risks and side-effects page had a lot of bolded words. Takao assured me that most of those were just there so they can't be sued, it didn't make me feel much better but I appreciated the sentiment, Koganei shrugged and was far more interested in trying to feel the baby kick more.

"So...this is...great." Takao uttered, slipping one of the more graphic leaflets underneath the others. "So do any of us actually know what's supposed to happen?"

"Ooh I've got an idea!" Koganei declared, jogging out of the room. We heard him in Kagami's room having a small argument - well Kagami making lots of confused yelps - before the second year returned with one of the ace's white shirts draped around his shoulders and picked up the pile of leaflets. "Ahem. Doctor Koga at your service."

I wasn't sure whether this was for comedy or not, Kuroko snorted slightly as our friend flicked through the colourful pieces of paper. Takao raised an eyebrow before laughing. "Alright _doctor_. Talk us through it."

Koganei smiled, clearing his throat before putting on a voice that vaguely reminded me of a certain captain. "Well, first you have two choices; a natural birth which would be induced by drugs or a c-section. Which do you want to hear first?"

"Surprise me." I replied, hands gently stroking my bump and feeling the movements that had picked up since Koganei started his little act.

"A'ight, we'll go with the c-section." Koganei shuffled the papers around. "They gut you like a fish."

"Koga!" I laughed. "That's not making want to have a c-section."

"That's the spirit~" He beamed. "So naturally? Or as naturally as this entire scenario of a male omega giving birth at seventeen is."

Takao rolled his eyes as I laughed. "Yeah we know, get on with it." He sighed.

"Okay, you get dosed up on laughing gas?" Koganei peered at the text on one leaflet. "Yeah. Laughing gas. Then you shit out a baby. Job done."

"You know, I don't think he's a qualified doctor." Takao remarked, pulling out his phone and pressing speed dial. "Hey Shin-chan, can we ask for your opinion on somethi--"

I heard the ace bark down the phone, I tuned out slightly as Kuroko lightly placed a hand on my bump. I wasn't sure which method I was preferring, Koganei's crude descriptions had made me laugh but they were also very to the point.

"Okay, so what I _actually_ wanted to discuss was; what do you recommend? C-section or natural birth?" Takao replied once he could get a word in edgeways. "Yeah it's for Izuki."

" _Male omega, seventeen, four months...if he's induced properly then a natural birth would be okay. C-sections are typically reserved for complicated births. I assume he's got birthing partners?_ "

"Yeah! Me and Kuroko-- I told you all this shin-chan!"

" _Well that's okay then. You can both have your hands crushed._ "

The call cut out abruptly. Takao pouted slightly but shrugged. "So there's a more qualified opinion, did your doctor say anything?"

I shook my head. "He said it was up to me, just to have an idea before they admit me at the end of next week."

If I was being honest, I was terrified. I knew the hospital wasn't going to let either of my lovers stay with me because they were pushed for space as it was, I was going to be alone for the first night since this all started in October, or that's what I thought anyway. After a bit more hilarity from 'Doctor Koga', Hyuuga came in and stated he wanted to talk to me in private, sending the others out into the lounge as he sat on the bed and took my hand in his.

"What's up?" I asked, my free hand on my bump.

"So about the hospital." He smiled. "You're not going into the public one. My parents, they had this trust fund set up for me when I was born and it was for when I got married - obviously that's not gonna happen - so they decided that they wanted to use the money for you. For the baby."

It took me a second to process what he was getting at. "They're paying for us to go...private? Junpei that costs--"

He pressed a finger to my lips. "Nope." He chuckled. "I already tried to argue with my mother, she told me to accept it as a gift on your behalf."

I sighed, letting a smile spread across my face. "Tell her I said thanks."

"She knows." He hummed, pressing his lips to mine gently. "You'll still have your doctor to see after the birth is done, and he said that he'll send all your notes to the doctor that'll be seeing you during the birth."

I nodded, guiding his hand to where the baby had been kicking the most. "I think someone's more than ready to see the world."

Hyuuga smiled. "Do you think it's a boy or a girl?"

I shrugged. "If we're going by what Kuroko said the other day...boy."

"Well, I'm still going to reserve judgement." He sighed, turning his attention to my bump. "Because you're going to be the least predictable person ever, aren't you? I mean with the three of us for parents, who knows what you're going to pick up."

"Probably your temper." I smirked.

"Gee thanks." He uttered. "Hear that? He's already painting a terrible picture of me."

I giggled, biting my bottom lip as he continued to talk to the baby. With just over a week until I was supposed to be admitted, this whole journey was nearing its end, only to make way for a completely different one. I was scared but excited, with my friends and lovers by my side it was going to be a hectic time for all of us but maybe, just maybe, we'd be able to pull it off.


	20. "It feels more like home"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm totally going to enjoy writing the next chapter...not putting it off at all...nope.
> 
> In all due seriousness, I want to get it right so excuse me if it's a little delayed!

 

"Please calm down babe." Hyuuga gently drew me into a hug. "It's okay."

"I-I'm scared Junpei." I hiccupped, burying my face in his shirt. He had only arrived home to get his work clothes but the others were at practice still so I was otherwise alone.

"Scared of what?" He spoke quietly, no trace of irritation at possibly being late to his father's shop evident.

"I don't like being here alone. What if something happens? What if the baby..." I trailed off.

The first few days of being left home alone weren't too bad, I caught up on lost sleep, had a steady stream of texts from Hayama and Takao between classes, heck I had even called Kasamatsu when he started complaining about Kise's fangirls again via text. However, the fact I was alone in the apartment also terrified me, the chances of anything bad happening were slim but it didn't stop me worrying. The periodic texts from my team-mates checking in on me along with the phone call at lunchtime had calmed my paranoia just long enough for Hyuuga to come home.

"Have you thought about calling your sister? Aya's probably more than happy to spend time with you during the day." He hummed, running a hand through my hair.

"She's busy today." I sniffed, hastily wiping my tears. "A-And my mother's got work."

He nodded, letting me step back. "You can call someone round if you want...Takao? I mean, we won't mind. Just text the others to let them know."

An idea came to me. "C-Can I call Mori? I know he's retired from the team now so he'll be free probably."

Hyuuga smiled, kissing my forehead. "If that's what you want, I'll stay until he arrives."

I fumbled with my phone, he picked up on the third ring and seemed surprised at my request for him to visit so close to the birth. Thankfully he only lived a ten minute train journey from us so he was there within half an hour. He was slightly spooked by Hyuuga's presence but my captain shook his hand before murmuring a hushed thanks, quickly returning to me and kissing my forehead again before leaving for work. I invited Moriyama to sit on the couch with me, he smiled and nodded, for a few moments neither of us said anything until he broke the silence.

"So you told them about last year?" He asked.

"Yeah, I kind of had to. I-I mean I felt like they should know what he did and...how things could be so different if you hadn't stepped in." I replied.

He shrugged. "I still remember Kasamatsu's bloodied knuckles. He actually bruised them slightly, apparently his aim was slightly off so he hit Imayoshi's jaw quite...hard."

I smiled. "Well I appreciate it. How are you anyway?"

"Alright, exams are a thing, university applications are another. Kasa and I are trying to get into the same place so we can rent a place together. Kise keeps trying to muscle in on the house hunting though and suggesting things hopelessly out of our price range in some attempt to get us to ask him to live with us."

"Well Kasa is his alpha, it's only natural."

"I suppose. We're sticking around Tokyo though, so it's not like they couldn't see each other." He sighed, gaze flicking to my bump. There was a slight trace of sadness in his eyes but he smiled anyway. "So when's the big day?"

I blushed, not entirely expecting him to want to talk about the baby. "A week...I-I go in tomorrow. They want to keep me under observation and run tests...considering it'll be nearly three months early..."

"I guess it's pretty worrying huh." He spoke softly. "Are you sure they can't put it off another month?"

I nodded. "Both my doctor and the hospital staff reckon I'd only be able to safely carry another two weeks. After that...it gets more complicated and--yeah I don't wanna talk about that. It's better for both of us if it's born before then."

He was quiet for a few moments. "It's not my place to ask, but how scared are you? I know you put on a brave face, heck you were adamant we told no-one about Imayoshi's doings, so you're probably doing it now. You can be honest with me, I won't tell anyone."

He was right, I had been putting on a brave face. It wasn't that I didn't want to seem vulnerable, or that I wanted to appear in control. Kiyoshi and Hyuuga were relatively calm about everything, there were occasions that one would become more protective and there had been a few small arguments. I had let my façade slip once or twice, my hormones were uncontrollable a lot of the time so it was only natural. I was scared though. I was scared that the early birth would have a negative outcome, I was scared that something would go wrong, I was scared for myself and on behalf of both my lovers.

"A lot." I replied, cradling my bump as I shifted my sitting position. "A lot can go wrong. Even with the private care that Hyuuga's parents paid for, a lot of things depend on things out of our control. And we've gone through so much to get to this point, so many choices have been made, the odds aren't exactly in our favour either; the rate of successful births from male omegas is outweighed by the...unsuccessful ones."

Moriyama nodded. "From what I know, judging by how healthy you seem and how active you were, I'd say it has a good chance of surviving. It's got a strong...mother...and equally strong fathers." He smiled. "I just wish I could've been..." He trailed off, averting his gaze.

"I know." I replied quietly, feeling guilty. "But it just wasn't the right time and...I'm sorry this was horrible of me to do."

"What?"

"Inviting you over, rubbing it all in your face. Oh god Mori I'm so sorry!" I covered my face with my hands, he sighed and edged closer, pulling my hands away gently.

"Hey, it's okay. I accepted that this would happen. You were traumatised after Imayoshi, I knew you'd be a mess so I stayed clear. I didn't anticipate that you'd not tell your team-mates until now but...I gathered you'd keep to yourself. Don't feel bad, hey don't cry--"

I sniffed loudly, trying to speak but only sobs came out, hastily wiping away fresh tears.

"Come on...I had moved on by inter-high. I was worried you'd be too scared to move on, so I'm happy that you've got a family in those two, they'll treat you right and care for both of you. You deserve them, they sure as hell know they're lucky to have you. I was actually surprised that Hyuuga let me stay here with you unsupervised."

"He trusts you...after the Imayoshi thing. Plus Kiyoshi will be home soon so even if he didn't..."

He nodded. "Don't feel bad about us Shun, it wasn't the right time or the right place, that's just life. You've got some wonderful years ahead of you now with this baby, your family and pack. Don't let the past haunt you, please. If you want to make it up to me then just do that."

For a few moments I was silent, he was speaking sense, I felt the baby kick almost as if it knew the gravity of the situation. I took his hand and placed it right where the most movement was, I watched his eyes widen slightly and a small smile grace his face.

"It's a very active baby..." I murmured. "Might make a basketball player out of them."

He chuckled. "Feels more like a soccer player actually."

I shrugged. "I'm sure I'll be proud of them regardless."

"And they'll be proud of you, when we tell them how you played an entire Winter cup tournament _and won_ whilst pregnant."

"As long as they don't follow in my footsteps..." I remarked.

He laughed, we spoke for a while longer before he declared he was going to go before the others got home. I hugged him before he left, he told me to let him know how it all went and that if I needed company again he was only a phone call away. With the apartment empty and quiet I decided to grab some more precious sleep, knowing full well that it would be in short supply in the next few weeks and months.

 

\---

 

Furihata graced us with his presence that evening, well it was more to do with the fact he wanted my advice on a heap of things. He sat on the end of the bed, visibly tired from practice as he was tipped to be the point guard for our inter-high campaign, but there were other things worrying him as I shook the sleep from my system.

"So run that by me again?" I asked, I didn't realise being pack mother would mean I had to be a therapist too.

"So Sei wants to make it official." He replied. "But I'm not sure what he means, we've not had sex and I don't know when his heat is due so I'm scared he's organising it around his heat and if he is then it'll be rough and painful and I don't want that. But I don't want to say no because I don't want to hurt his feelings."

"Okay." I sighed. "So have you asked him about any of this? When his heat is due, what he has in mind etc?"

"N-No, he wants it to be a surprise."

"His heat?" I asked skeptically. "I doubt it."

He shrugged, short of calling the captain myself there wasn't a lot I could do about this. I called Kuroko in and asked him if he knew when Akashi had his first heat, the average time between them was half a year so we could work it out from there possibly. OF course the shadow didn't actually _know_ but he guessed it was shortly after Aomine's but before Murasakiabra's based on memories of the miracles in practice.

"So somewhere between July and October." Kuroko finished. "This would imply his next one - if it hasn’t happened already - would be occurring before February."

"When does Akashi want to see you?" I asked Furihata.

"...next weekend."

I internally screamed. I reached for my phone and called Hayama, we weren't close but we were close enough for a simple question.

" _Sup?_ "

"Has Akashi gone through his heat yet?" I asked bluntly.

There was a chuckle from the other end. " _Uh, I'm not sure. Why? Ooh I know, he's going to visit his omega next week, I think he's trying to get it to come before then...he mumbled something about not wanting it to ruin his plans._ "

I gave the phone a puzzled look. "Right. How exactly is he doing that?"

" _I don't fucking know, shall I put Reo-nee on? He probably knows the ins and outs of our captain's--_ "

There was a raised voice that sounded like Mayuzumi complaining before Reo stole the phone away. I was told that Akashi was taking some expensive pill that sounded suspiciously like viagra to try and prompt his heat to arrive early as he didn't want it to sneak up on him whilst he was with Furihata. Whilst Reo rattled off all this in my ear I kept my gaze on Furihata, he was restless and kept pressing down on a bruise he had sustained during practice.

"Okay, so can you tell him that viagra probably won't do shit.” I sighed, ignoring Reo's gasp at my cussing. “Also that he's worried Furi half to death over this so to man the fuck up and talk to him about it."

Kuroko tried to hide his slight smirk at my remarks, Reo huffed and told me he'd do that before I got Hayama back on the line.

" _So I probably should've told you that you were on speaker and that Akashi was here._ "

"Probably. But in case it had slipped your attention; I'm pregnant and also a pack mother, I couldn't care less what your captain thinks of me but he better remember what a mother bear will do to protect her cubs."

Hayama laughed. " _You're a strange one Izuki. Akashi went bright red, Mayuzumi laughed until Reo-nee slapped him and told him to stop being mean or he'd lose his sex privileges._ "

Rakuzan were a strange team, then again we couldn't say much. The call ended and Furihata gave me a puzzled look, I told him Akashi would probably want to speak to him soon. He asked me for some advice on being Seirin's point guard, I told him to not let Hyuuga go into clutch time and if he did to just pass to him, and if he wanted to be heard over the sounds of play he had to work on using buzzwords to attract the team's attention.

"Also it wouldn't hurt for you to memorise our different play styles so you don't have to think too much in the heat of the moment." I finalised.

He nodded, becoming distracted by his phone. "It's Sei...thanks for everything senpai!" He smiled, scrambling off the bed as he answered the call.

Kuroko gave me a sympathetic smile as he offered me a glass of water. If this was what being a pack mother was like then god only knew what being an actual mother at the same time would be like. The baby kept shifting its position, it was a weird sensation and causing me to gasp unexpectedly, which in turn scared the shit out of Kiyoshi who had since joined me in bed. He placed his hand over the bump and chuckled quietly.

"Hey, settle down in there." He spoke. "You don't have to cause a riot just yet, save that for next week."

"Gee thanks." I rolled my eyes. "Someone's getting impatient though, must be all the visitors."

Kiyoshi kissed my cheek, nuzzling my neck as he rubbed circles over the bump, strangely enough this seemed to calm the frantic movements. I exhaled slowly, thankful for the stillness after the last half an hour of sporadic kicks.

"It's weird, because at the age it is...it shouldn't be that active surely?" I hummed.

"Male births are weird." Kiyoshi sighed. "Don't think about it. Just roll with it."

I snorted, resting my head on his as he kept nuzzling my neck. I thought that I was done given out advice but turns out there was one more person who needed my 'motherly wisdom' as Koganei had coined it as.

"Shun can I ask you something?" Kagami uttered, cautiously standing in the doorway as Kiyoshi stayed silent.

"Go for it." I replied.

"I...uh Teppei do you mind?" The ace was behaving more like Furihata in that moment as Kiyoshi shrugged and left my side, promising to get Hyuuga to hurry up with the food for me as he left. I gestured for the ace to sit on the edge of the bed and get on with it. "So, I don't know if you've noticed how close Tetsuya's been with this whole baby thing..." He mumbled, not meeting my eyes but staring at the wall behind me instead. "But he seems enchanted by it all."

I smiled. "Well he does seem to be a natural. He was the first one to suggest that I was pregnant and he's been around all through this pregnancy. I think it might be an omega thing, although I wouldn't just put it down to that."

"Yeah well, I've seen how he is with you, how attentive he is and stuff like that..." He trailed off and bit his lip slightly as he thought. "I was wondering if you think it's because he wants one?"

"A baby?" I clarified.

"Yeah."

I shrugged. "As I just told Furi, you couples need to talk about this shit."

He chuckled. "Talking about this kind of thing with Tetsuya...I always feel like a jerk because he's probably told me it all through his actions. And I don't know what him and the miracles spoke about in middle school so I could be walking into a minefield with some topics, especially if any of them bring up memories of Aomine."

I nodded sympathetically, taking his hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Look Taiga. I can't read minds, I don't know if he wants to have a baby, I'd highly recommend waiting if he does because impersonating a whale isn't the most fun thing in the world when you're our age. And you just need to listen to Junpei and Teppei to know that being the father isn't a stress-free job either. However, you love him and it's clear as day he loves you, so bring it up to him when I'm not around. Have a conversation about it, I know it won't be easy and he might be...well Kuroko about it."

"You mean blunt and stoic?" Kagami suggested with a smile. "He's got a heart of gold though, I'd do anything to keep him safe."

"And one day he'll make a good parent, you both will." I continued. "You just need to talk about these things. Don't do what we did, sure it's all worked out nicely so far but it could've gone a different route. There have been some ugly nights of crying on my part and the constant changing of my mind on whether I wanted to keep it or not..." I smiled weakly at him, squeezing his hand again. "Don't make him go through that Taiga."

He nodded, taking his hand back. "Yeah, I hear you." He murmured. "Thanks Shun."

"Don't mention it, it's the least I can do after you've been so welcoming."

He shrugged. "It got lonely around here, I actually like having you guys here. It feels more like home."

"I'll remind you of that when the baby's crying at four am."

"I'm a deep sleeper." He smirked.

 

\---

 

"I love you."

"I love you too Junpei."

He smiled, stealing my lips briefly. "I still can't believe this is happening."

Kiyoshi laughed, hand rubbing circles on my bump again. "If you say so."

"In a week we're going to be...we're gonna have a baby."

I rolled my eyes, Hyuuga was in one of his lovey-dovey moods it seemed as we relaxed in bed for the last time before the baby arrived. I didn't mind though, I preferred him like this to some of his other moods.

"Yeah, things are gonna be weird." I murmured.

"Since when were they not?" Kiyoshi remarked, kissing my cheek. "This is us we're talking about."

The baby had been quiet for a while but as soon as both my lovers were present it had literally started kicking up a fuss. I exhaled heavily as Hyuuga murmured to the bump, calming it slightly as the faintest sound of him singing seemed to coax the baby to stop being so restless. Kiyoshi chuckled in my ear as Hyuuga continued.

"Who would've thought our clutch-time-happy captain would be so soft-spoken."

I smiled, my hand carding through Hyuuga's hair. "It just shows that our on-court personalities can be very different to our off-court ones."

He hummed in agreement. "I dunno, you're very cool-headed both on and off court."

"I'm good at shoving the stress aside." I replied.

"Aren't you scared though?"

Hyuuga glanced up at me as Kiyoshi's question hung in the air. "Well yeah of course but..."

"You didn't want to worry us?" Hyuuga smiled as he moved so he was level with me. "We're always going to worry about you."

I looked at both of them, sincerity in both their expressions. "...true."

"Because we both love you." Kiyoshi added.

I smiled, feeling my cheeks heat up slightly. They both peppered light kisses to my neck and face before it was decided that I needed sleep. My heart quickened as the nerves started biting at me, being alone in the apartment was one thing but being alone in hospital was another entirely. I quickly shoved that thought aside and buried my face in Kiyoshi's shirt, inhaling his scent so I could remember it clearly if I needed to.

 


	21. "Try not to break my hand"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprisingly enough, no-one tends to go into detail about the birthing process in alpha/omega/beta AUs...so I kinda had to watch a few documentaries and I don't think I'll ever fully erase those images from my mind - you can't say I don't put effort into this fic - but don't worry, this chapter doesn't have any graphic details...mainly because I couldn't stomach writing them.
> 
> Also this got written in one sitting thanks to Avenged Sevenfold giving me background noise to write to.
> 
> I love how whenever I say I might be late updating, I end up getting it all written within two days. -.-

 

"So we'll induce you in two hours, the nurses will be around if you need anything until then." The doctor told me, he was older than my usual one but he seemed nice enough. "These two can stay with you until then but once you've been induced they'll have to leave okay?"

I nodded, squeezing Kiyoshi's hand. The doctor left us to it, Koganei and Takao were arriving within the hour but Kuroko was with us already having left Kagami at home for his own sanity. I had just had the last scan before they decided everything was good to go, there were no anomalies and the doctor reckoned that it would be a straightforward birth. The room we had was small but I was the only one in it so we had more than enough privacy, a standard protocol for male omegas.

"How are you feeling love?" Kiyoshi asked, he was sat on the edge of the bed with his arm protectively placed around my head on the pillow.

"I dunno." I murmured, it all felt surreal that we were finally at this point. "Nervous I guess..."

He smiled, he was masking his worry well, Hyuuga wasn't, he was pacing the room rapidly texting. Kuroko glanced back and forth between us all with a small smile. I tried to think about my breathing as Kiyoshi gently stroked my cheek. It was too early in the morning for this, but as the entire process could take hours we were told to get here as early as possible - thank the gods it was a weekend.

"You'll be fine." Kiyoshi kissed my forehead. "You both will be."

I smiled back at him. "I hope so, it's going to hurt like hell though."

"If you went public then they wouldn't be giving you anything." Hyuuga added. "That's part of the reason my parents insisted we went private, they knew it was going to be painful enough for you let alone without any meds."

I sighed heavily, this was going to be a long day. Kiyoshi kept kissing my forehead, I leaned against him and tried to get some more minutes of sleep. Hyuuga was restless and wasn't able to sit still for long which was very distracting and borderline irritating.

"Junpei can you not?" I asked, not bothering to open my eyes.

"S-Sorry." He uttered.

"Come here." I reached out a hand and patted the opposite side of the bed from Kiyoshi. He was hesitant but gently eased himself to sit next to me on the larger than average bed. "Why are you so restless?"

He was quiet for a few moments, hand taking mine and squeezing it slightly. "I-I dunno, I just...this is a big thing and we're not gonna be here when you're in pain..."

"That's why Kuroko and Takao will be here, two people you can trust." I opened one eye and looked at him.

"It's not that I don't trust them, I want us to be here when our child is born..."

"...you big softie." I joked, sitting up slowly and drawing him into a kiss. "You surprise me sometimes."

Kiyoshi chuckled as Hyuuga's face flushed red, I led back against the pillows that were propping me upright, feeling the baby kick at the sound of Kiyoshi's laugh.

"Yeah, well..." The captain averted his gaze, cheeks still rosy as cleared his throat. "You don't expect me to be completely..." He shrugged, not finishing his sentence. "Whatever."

I smiled, shaking my head as he squeezed my hand again. I tried not to think about how the minutes were ticking by, how my nerves were really starting to take hold now as Kiyoshi nuzzled my neck, lips pressing light kisses as I whimpered slightly. He gazed at me, brown eyes pooling with concern as I tried to wave off my reaction.

"You're scared aren't you?" He stated.

"Of course." I scoffed, not intending to come off so rashly. "S-Sorry but you're kind of stating the obvious."

He smiled. "It's okay, I know. Is there anything we can do to help you relax?"

I shrugged, I wasn't sure what would help at this point apart from getting on with it, however that was out of the question as the hospital had a strict schedule when it came to these things. They shared a glance before Kiyoshi nodded to Hyuuga and left my side, slipping his phone out of his pocket and stepping into the hallway to make a call. Hyuuga beckoned Kuroko over, the shadow taking Kiyoshi's place by my side with a slightly bemused expression.

"I'm stepping out for a bit too, just to get some air and let you settle a bit." He explained to me, glancing at Kuroko. "You okay to stay with him?"

Kuroko nodded, watching our captain leave. I wasn't sure what they were hoping to achieve by leaving me alone, I sighed heavily and closed my eyes not actually expecting to fall asleep. I awoke to Takao sitting on the bed, he offered me a glass of water as I slowly sat up. Both my lovers were watching from the end of my bed, doing their best to seem calm but a glance at the clock told me that we only had a few more minutes left.

"How are you feeling?" Takao asked as he took the glass back from me.

"...I-I don't..." I murmured, nerves taking over quickly. He gave me a sympathetic smile as he nodded to Hyuuga, my lover approached and kissed my cheek, cupping my face and getting me to look directly at him.

"You'll be in safe hands babe." He whispered, pressing his forehead against mine. "And we'll return to you as soon as we can."

"I-I don't want to...Junpei it's going to hurt..." I breathed.

He gave me a weak smile. "I know...and I can't do anything about that."

I tried to swallow the lump in my throat, going through something so emotionally draining without my two alphas was going to drive me insane. Kiyoshi's hand found mine and gave it a gentle squeeze before kissing it, I tilted my head and caught Hyuuga's lips with mine, whimpering slightly as he slowly pulled away.

"Th-The nurse will be here in a minute." He uttered, averting his gaze and adjusting his glasses as he stepped back to let Kiyoshi closer to me.

"You'll be okay Shun." The other murmured. "You're strong-willed and stubborn, if you can put up with the two of us for boyfriends then you can deliver this baby."

I wasn't sure if I was meant to find that funny or not, it gave me a little bit of comfort that he believed in me to that extent. He smiled and kissed me, running a hand through my hair and nuzzling my neck one last time.

"I love you both." I told him, glancing at Hyuuga's slightly teary eyes.

"We love you too." Kiyoshi replied. "And you're gonna have Takao and Kuroko with you the entire time, they'll look after you."

"You'll have Koga with you." I reminded him. "Try not to get too worked up at him, he'll only be trying to help."

Kiyoshi smiled. "Can't make any promises but we'll try."

The nurse cleared her throat, Kiyoshi gave my forehead a final kiss before pulling away and taking Hyuuga's hand. I gave them a weak smile as they left, exhaling heavily as the door closed quietly. Takao ruffled my hair and smiled, Kuroko appeared on my other side and took my hand. With my alphas gone the nurse approached, she couldn't have been much older than Aya with her kind face and slim figure. I felt a little more at ease when she explained that she had handled three other male omega births, it meant that she knew what she was doing.

"So the doctor will be back in about half an hour but I've been instructed to induce you." She smiled. "Are you familiar with how this will go or do you want me to explain it to you?"

My throat was dry, I looked to Takao for help. "Can you just run through it again quickly?" He asked, totally at ease with the situation.

She nodded. "So with female births we usually insert a tablet into the vagina but obviously that's not really an option here, so it'll be a small injection into your thigh. It'll cause your body to gradually relax and--"

"You'll shit out a baby." Takao summarised to me, I snorted and smiled at his attempt to lighten the situation.

The nurse raised an eyebrow before Kuroko explained the 'doctor Koga' incident to her, she laughed politely and remarked that it must be nice to have such supportive friends.

"Well he is a pack mother." Takao replied. "You all adore him don't you?"

Kuroko nodded, the nurse prepared the small needle, I didn't particularly like or dislike them and it was over before I had time to think about it. She smiled at me and told me that getting up and walking around will help the baby along a bit, when Kuroko asked about the pain medication she nodded and slipped out of the room to go and find some for me.

"So, the point of no return." Takao remarked. "Do you want to get up?"

I shrugged, I had been sat down for over two hours and I was rather comfortable. "I probably should..."

Between the two of them, they helped me at least stand next to the bed, it wasn't that I was unsteady on my feet but they were more aware that the labour could kick in quickly and without much warning. As far as how I actually felt; nothing major had changed, my pulse had increased slightly but I was far from in agonising pain.

That didn't last long though. I broke out in a sweat similar to when I went through my heat within the hour, Takao was quick to react, catching me before my legs gave out. I didn't say anything, I just panted as my lower back started burning slightly, whimpering as the pain started to wash over me.

"Do you wanna find the nurse Kuroko?" Takao asked, getting me to wrap my arms around his neck as I leaned against him for support. "Come on Izuki, remember those dumb breathing techniques yeah? Shin-chan was telling me about them yesterday, he pretty much gave me a lesson in how to be the perfect birthing partner--"

"Did he tell you that your constant babbling would annoy me?" I groaned.

"Yeah actually." He laughed, I knew he was trying to keep his voice upbeat and calm so I wouldn't worry too much. "He also said you'll probably crush my hand at some point."

I dug my nails into his shoulders, a ripple of pain going through me. "Takao...never have a baby."

He stroked my back through the thin hospital gown. "I don't think Shin-chan's the fatherly type anyway."

"He might surprise you. I didn't think Junpei was..." I breathed, trying to retain some sort of conversation as I did my best to deal with the pain.

The nurse arrived, she smiled and praised Takao for his actions before moving to talk directly to me. "How far are they apart?"

"I dunno...a minute? Two?" I sighed, burying my face in the crook of Takao's neck. "It just hurts."

"Well I won't lie to you, it'll hurt more in a while. Now what position do you want to be in?"

All these questions were hitting a brick wall in my mind, all I could think about was the pain and hanging onto Takao. Kuroko suggested that I take the weight off my feet at least, I found myself on the bed staring at the ceiling as the nurse gently eased my legs apart, a slight pang of embarrassment rushed through me.

"It's okay, I'm not staring." She chimed as my legs tried to close instinctively, that didn't stop the blush on my face. Takao took my hand and squeezed it, getting me to focus on him.

"So as I was saying, Shin-chan told me about how Kuroko and I should try to distract you from the pain. To keep you talking y'know?"

I raised an eyebrow.

"Do you have any names picked out?" He continued, glancing at Kuroko for assistance.

I shook my head, wincing as another ripple of pain washed over me, slightly harsher than the last.

"Any suggestions Kuroko?" Takao kept going, he was really taking this seriously and was determined to fulfil his role. "I think Kazunari is a good one." He winked at me.

"Why does everyone keep asking me to name the baby after them?" I sighed, squeezing his hand.

Kuroko had the grace not to laugh. "What was it that Kiyoshi said, Katsu? For victory?"

"Ooh that's a good one, although he might take it to heart if he loses...hmm."

The door opened and the doctor returned, he briefly spoke to the nurse and smiled at me. "You're doing well, do you want the gas now or--"

"Fuck yes." I sighed, squeezing Takao's hand again and gaining a small hiss from him but he was taking it in his stride.

Kuroko was handed the small canister that mimicked a fire extinguisher with a mouthpiece on the end of the tube, I accepted it and inhaled. It took a few seconds to have an affect but when it did it made me feel a little light-headed.

"Easy now." Kuroko murmured with a smile. "Don't overdo it."

Another nurse had appeared, I hadn't paid much attention to the proceedings until I was spoken to again.

"We're going to speed the baby up a bit okay?"

I nodded dumbly, not actually clarifying what they were going to do. A sharp prick to my thigh indicated another needle, my short intake of gas wore off quickly and the pain hit me all at once. Takao tried to prise my fingers from his hand as I reacted to the burn of my body. I somewhat wished I had paid attention when they ran through all the details of giving birth, I wasn't quite sure how much more of this I had to withstand.

"Talk to him please." The nurse told Takao and Kuroko. "I need him to try and relax."

I was offered the gas again, I took it as Takao decided now was the perfect time to start asking me questions. "So how did you actually meet Hyuuga?"  
   
"Middle school." I panted, my body was sweating like crazy and my mind was quickly switching between pain and dizziness. "I-uh...mini-basketball. We were on the same team during one practice...and in the same class." I felt the nurse injecting me again but was quickly brought back to Takao's question by the clicking of fingers. "We lived near each other so we walked home together a lot..."

"Cute~"

"We just kinda hit it off..." I inhaled more gas, memories flooding back from that first summer with Hyuuga. Times were much simpler then and we only cared about spending the summer catching fireflies and staying up as late as we could without getting caught. "I'd annoy him with puns, he'd pretend he hated them and would hit me with a pillow."

"Sounds like sock-senpai."

Kuroko started wiping the sweat from my forehead. I was panting and keeping a firm grasp on Takao's hand, my other hand fisting the hospital bed sheets.

"Kazunari, tell me how you and Midorima met." I demanded, wincing as I felt the baby move. The nurses quickly confirmed that this was about to get very painful for me and told Kuroko to keep the gas going until I was ready to get this over with.

"Oh okay. So we were in try-outs. I actually kinda hated him at first because the miracles beat my team back in middle school but we ended up on the team. I quickly warmed up to him as I watched him practice--"

I cut him off with a loud hiss of pain, I couldn't tell what was exactly happening; just that it hurt like hell and the only thing that I could do was nearly break Takao's hand.

"--shit, that hurts!" Takao uttered.

"Oh you wanna know pain Kazunari? I'll give you something to complain about--"

Kuroko shoved the mouthpiece between my lips and I inhaled on reflex, it soothed me slightly, the pain not disappearing but at least I was able to breathe through it a little easier.

"Okay, so the baby's in position." The nurse declared, gaining eye contact with me. "You're doing well Izuki, I need you to take some deep breaths and push on the next contra--"

"You're joking..." I breathed. "It's gonna get worse?"

She smiled slightly. "It'll be worth it."

Takao took advantage of my attention being directed elsewhere to swap hands. "Try not to break my hand, I need this one for shooting."

"Shut the fuck up." I uttered. "You're not the one in pain here."

He smiled, brushing my fringe away. "You're doing well though. Isn't he Kuroko?"

I glanced at the other first year, he smiled and nodded, taking my free hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze. I followed the nurse's instructions; inhaling deeply as the pain intensified again.

"Whenever you're ready." The nurse told me.

Whenever _I_ was ready? I was pretty sure the better question was whenever the baby felt like it. I wasn't even sure _how_ to push but apparently my body was more than aware of what to do, the pain however was another matter entirely. I couldn't tell where it came from but my body felt like it was on fire, my heart was racing as I tried to breathe through it and my hands tried to close into fists.

"Fuck..." Takao hissed as my knuckles went white. "Shun can you--"

Kuroko didn't say anything but he gave Takao a warning glance as I gasped. The gas was a welcome relief as the nurse told me the head was out, I didn't care about how my body was going to go back to being 'normal' anymore, I just wanted this to be over.

"Just one more push like that Izuki, come on you've done so well so far." The nurse told me, patting my inner thigh in encouragement.

My chest was heaving as I tried to summon any energy I had left. I moaned as I shook my head, this was really too much for me. I felt a hand on my forehead brushing my bangs away again.

"Senpai you can do it." Kuroko murmured, squeezing my hand back not nearly as hard as I had crushed his. "Just one more."

Takao nodded in agreement. "I won't even be mad about my hand."

"Fuck you Kazunari." I cussed around the mouthpiece of the gas.

"Love you too." Takao smiled.

The next one was even worse, I felt tears leak out from my eyes as I held in the scream I wanted to let out. I felt the pressure ease, my head was fuzzy as the small sounds of crying filled the air. My grip loosened on Takao and Kuroko's hands as my eyes slipped shut, I couldn't keep myself awake, all my energy had been spent within a few moments. I was gone in seconds.

 

\---

 

When I came to, I was aware of two things; one was that Koganei was next to me looking worried, the second was that I was hooked up to an annoying beeping machine with lots of squiggly lines. When he realised I was awake, he immediately leaned down and lightly shook me.

"Itzuki?" He murmured. "Can you hear me?"

I nodded, feeling out of it still. My body ached all over and I was vaguely aware that the only ones in the room with us were Takao and Kuroko.

"The baby's okay." He told me. "Your alphas are climbing the walls, when the nurse came in and told us you had passed out I thought they were going to break something. I told them I'd come in first because the doctor won't let them in until they know you're okay."

It made sense...somewhat.

"Where's..." I whispered, glancing around the room, my vision was blurred but I quickly realised that there was no crib in sight.

"He's been taken for some tests, obviously he's premature so they want to check for health conditions--"

"He?" I asked. "A-A boy?"

Koganei smiled. "Yeah, you have a son. Congrats."

I blinked, a son. I had a son. I had given birth. A lot of emotions ran through me in that moment; joy, fear, surprise and relief to name a few. I reached for Koganei and he leaned down so I could hug him.

"I'll go tell the doctor you're awake." Takao told us. "Should someone tell his--"

"No, wait for the doctor to check him over." Kuroko cut in. "They won't want to leave his side once they get here."

The doctor was understandably concerned at first, he checked me over and hummed a bit at the monitor before sighing. "You gave us a scare there."

"Sorry..."

He smiled warmly, a smile I was used to seeing on Kiyoshi's face. "It's nothing to be worried about. It's surprisingly common for male omegas to black out, the body isn't used to high amounts of stress like that. It doesn't make it any less terrifying for those involved though." He went on to tell me that they'd be keeping me in for a few nights for observation, if I was lucky then I'd be able to go home midweek.

"What about my...son?" The word rolled off my tongue with a little hesitation, I'd still have to get used to saying it.

He nodded. "He's good, very good actually. I don't know what you ate or did during your pregnancy but you've got a very strong lad there."

"Playing an entire Winter cup tournament?"

He raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Seirin's point guard? I thought you looked familiar."

I nodded, not being able to contain a smile. "That's me."

"My son plays mini-basketball currently, he was glued to the TV during your final match against Rakuzan." He chuckled. "He plays small forward but he has a great respect for the point guards at high school level."

"Really?" I replied. "Tell him that it takes a lot to get to our level, but if he sticks with it and loves the sport then he'll have no problem finding a good team."

The doctor smiled at me. "I will. He's actually dropping by tomorrow sometime, always does on a Sunday, do you think he could come and see you?"

I nodded. "I'd love that actually."

He took a few more results from the monitor before telling the nurse to go and get my alphas, in the few minutes I had before they arrived I thanked Kuroko and Takao for everything they did, even apologising for nearly breaking both of Takao's hands.

"Don't sweat it." The other point guard smiled. "I knew what I was getting myself into. I'm just glad you're okay, and I'm actually really proud about being here with you..." He blushed slightly. "Aw man, I'm going soft...Shin-chan would be scowling at me right now."

I laughed, accepting a glass of water that was offered to me. The door opened with a loud thud, both of my lovers entered looking pale as ghosts, when they saw that I was awake they both sighed in relief. Kiyoshi got to me first, delicately tilting my face up and planting a chaste kiss to my lips. I cupped his face and moved to nuzzle his neck, glancing at Hyuuga and reaching out for him.

"We were so worried." Kiyoshi breathed against my neck as Hyuuga kissed me. "When they said you had passed out..."

I nodded. "I know." I whispered. "I know."

"They wouldn't tell us if it was a boy or a girl...they wouldn't tell us anything." Hyuuga continued.

I gazed at both of them, smiling as they exchanged a glance. "It's...we have a son." I told them.

Kiyoshi grinned, Hyuuga exhaled heavily and smiled. The others smiled at each other as they watched my alphas react to this news.

"So when do we...can we see him?" Hyuuga asked, turning to the nurse who was lingering in the doorway. She smiled and nodded, saying she'd go and fetch him.

With a bit of wincing, I edged over on the bed so Hyuuga could join me, he wrapped an arm around me and hugged me tightly. Kiyoshi took a few moments to text his grandparents and tell them everything was okay, I was still exhausted so I leaned into Hyuuga's hold, wanting to sleep but at the same time I needed to see him, I needed to see my son.

"Here he is..." A voice spoke, the nurse wheeled in a small cart, I knew it was an incubator but she assured us it was just because they were running tests when she got him. "Your son."

He was so small as I gathered him in my arms, it was weird to think that he was...mine...ours.

"He's got your hair." I murmured to Kiyoshi, gently nuzzling the baby's neck. Tiny fingers reached out and brushed my cheek as he tried to open his eyes. Hyuuga pressed a kiss to my jaw as he gazed at the small infant.

"So I guess that answers that question." He whispered.

"Not necessarily..." I murmured. "Only a test will really say how much of who's DNA he has..."

He shrugged, my attention was drawn back to the little one, I smiled as I watched him open his eyes finally, a blend of grey and green looked up at me. One colour would probably fade over time and whichever was dominant would remain.

"...hey there little one..." I breathed, unable to stop the smile on my face as he looked up at me.

"I suppose he needs a name." Kiyoshi hummed as he sat on the edge of the bed.

"We're not naming him Katsu." I stated. "If we name him something like victory then he might feel pressured..."

"That's a good point I suppose."

A few more names were batted back and forth between the group, none of them really fit. The nurse stayed quiet, letting us bicker a bit before she approached me to look at the baby.

"What about Koichi? It can mean a lot of things but almost all of them relate to 'happiness' or 'shining' and 'first born son'." She smiled. "Nothing that'll pressure him."

I nodded, looking at Hyuuga and Kiyoshi. They both smiled and nodded, I turned my attention back to my son. "Koichi..." I repeated. "Yeah, I like it."

He seemed to fall asleep, I kissed his soft skin, nuzzling him and feeling a sense of overwhelming relief wash over me. He was here, he was healthy, he was ours. After kissing his delicate face, I let Hyuuga hold him, the captain seemed a little out of his depth until the nurse gently told him how to hold our son properly.

"He's so small..." Hyuuga breathed, glancing at me. I shrugged in response, he was something like two or three months early after all. "And he definitely has Teppei's hair."

Kiyoshi snorted, shaking his head with a smile. "Probably has your temper then."

"Hey!"

"Shhh." I chided both of them. "Don't be so loud."

They shared an amused smile. "Already getting all motherly." Kiyoshi remarked as he peered at the baby in Hyuuga's arms, he gently lifted Koichi's hand with one finger, making the already small infant seem smaller.

"What do you think Junpei, point guard or shooting?"

"Shooting."

"Will you two stop that?" I sighed. "If he wants to play basketball then he can put we're not forcing him into anything."

They both chuckled slightly. "We know babe." Hyuuga replied, leaning over and kissing my cheek. "But humour us."

I rolled my eyes. "...point guard, but that's because I'm biased."

Kiyoshi gently took our son in his arms, kissing his forehead as he walked over to our friends. They all murmured quietly and excitedly to the newborn as I exhaled lightly, Hyuuga hugged me and planted more kisses to my cheek, whispering how proud he was of me and how much he loved me. I nodded, burying my face in his neck as I sighed, every fiber of my being wanted to sleep but that was gonna have to wait as small cries interrupted my dozing.

"I think he's hungry." Kiyoshi told me, handing me the baby.

"Well you can all get the hell out then. I'm not doing anything whilst you're all watching." They both laughed but I gave them both a look that told them I wasn't joking. "I'm serious. The nurse can stay but you can all leave."

Koganei came to my rescue as he tugged both of them away, telling them that 'the pack mother has spoken' and that they should probably call their families to let them know what's been happening. Once the door firmly closed behind them, I turned to the nurse with a weak smile.

"So...how do I even do this?"


	22. Start of something good

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's to adorable for words. 
> 
> Okay so, some of you may know already but I'm having a week off from Monday 11th - Saturday 16th for various reasons (nothing to do with not wanting to write, more that I've been writing since October and I really need a break for a few days) but I'll be back to updating regularly from next Sunday!

 

"So this is my nephew?" Aya asked softly, peering at Koichi as I held him.

"Yes." I smiled, glancing at Mai who was curious but seemed hesitant to push past our older sister. I exchanged a glance with Kiyoshi and he nodded, picking up my younger sister and setting her on the bed next to me with ease. I gently leaned closer to her so she could see her nephew, her face lit up as Koichi stared at her with wide eyes.

"He's so cute~" She beamed. "What's he called onii-chan?"

"Koichi." I told her. "Do you want to hold him?"

She nodded, Kiyoshi chuckled and helped her position her arms properly as I slowly passed our son to my sister. Once I was satisfied that my boyfriend was supervising enough, I turned my attention to my parents who had been stood at the end of the bed with Hyuuga. I thought my mother was going to start crying at any moment as she quickly moved to my side and hugged me tightly, kissing my forehead and murmuring how proud she was of me. My father was a bit more reserved, he hadn't really spoken to me much about the whole thing but he squeezed my shoulder reassuringly as he looked at my son. They stayed for a while longer, Aya getting Hyuuga to take a family photo before they left.

I managed to kick my two alphas out again so I could feed Koichi, gradually getting the hang of the whole 'nursing' concept, before we got more visitors. Naturally, the team showed up all in a state of excitement. Koganei was beaming and babbling to everyone about how it was such a beautiful moment until Kuroko pointed out that he wasn't actually _there_ and he wasn't the one who's hand nearly got broken.

"Yeah but I had to deal with these two going crazy." Koganei defended as Mitobe waved at Koichi.

"Gee thanks Koga." Hyuuga dead-panned. "So god-fatherly of you."

"Oh that's a point!"

I gave Hyuuga a half-hearted glare. "No I haven't decided yet Koga." I replied before the inevitable question was asked. I watched as each member of Seirin cooed over the baby, smiling a little bit as I felt myself tire, Hyuuga gently carded a hand through my hair as Kiyoshi kept an eye on our team-mates, not that we suspected any of them would intentionally harm Koichi.

"Wait...where's Furi?" I asked, suddenly aware we were two people short. "And Kagami?"

"Kagami's outside with Nigou, he's waiting for Furihata to get here before smuggling the puppy in." Tsuchida replied.

Something about the image of Kagami smuggling Nigou into the hospital made me laugh, Koichi made a small startled noise in Fukuda's arms before the first year quickly handed me my son. I smiled at the infant, he was tiring quickly so I gently wrapped the blanket around him a little more and slowly rocked him to sleep. The others had the good grace to quieten down, just in time for the door to open and Kagami to arrive with his kit bag, he unzipped the bag and Nigou's head popped out almost comedic. The ace grumbled about having to keep the puppy quiet but his gaze softened when he saw the sleeping baby.

"...he's pretty cute."

"Isn't he?" Koga beamed.

Nigou slowly approached, clambering over the bed sheets and sniffing the bundle in my arms. Hyuuga stroked the puppy's head as I cautiously let him get closer. Koichi stayed sleeping as the moist nose pressed against his cheek, I smiled as Nigou sat down and tilted his head to the side.

"So where's Furi?" Kuroko asked Kagami.

"Ah, well he's outside he told me that he'd come in once there's less people around..." Kagami rubbed the back of his neck. "Something about not wanted to crowd Izuki."

"That's a good idea actually." Kiyoshi cut in. "Not trying to be rude guys, but we've had a lot of visitors already and I know that more will be here soon so..."

Tsuchida got everyone moving, Kuroko and Kagami remained though, mainly because Nigou didn't seem to want to leave now that he was here. Hyuuga took Koichi from me as my arms were getting tired, I was content with stroking Nigou as Furihata arrived, tugging the Rakuzan captain with him. I instantly picked up on the scent, or the mixture of them anyway. Akashi's gaze flickered between me and my son, he stood behind Furihata almost as if to say he had no intention of trying anything.

"How are you doing?" Furihata asked with a smile.

"My body aches but other than that I'm pretty good." I replied. "And you?"

He blushed slightly, glancing at Akashi. "Yeah, everything's fine." He approached Hyuuga and peered at Koichi, smiling as he looked between me and the baby. "He's got your complexion."

"I think he's probably gonna have Hyuuga's eyes." I hummed.

"As long as he doesn't have the captain's temper."

"What is it with everyone bringing up my temper? I'm not as bad as Kasamatsu!"

Akashi smiled, leaning against the opposite wall as he watched his boyfriend take my son in his arms. Furihata beckoned the other over to get a better look, still under the intense gaze of both my alphas. The other captain rested his chin on Furihata's shoulder, keeping his hands to himself as he watched his boyfriend fuss over the baby. I dared to let my eyes slip shut, all my energy had been sapped today and I figured that Koichi was in safe hands currently.

 

\---

 

"Shhh, let him sleep." Kiyoshi's soft voice drifted through my mind as I stirred. "He's been awake since six."

"Are you sure he's fine with us being here?" Kasamatsu sighed.

"You guys are welcome, as long as you don't disturb the baby too much." Hyuuga replied, his voice was a lot closer so I guessed he had pulled up a chair next to the bed.

"He's so small~ He's like Kurokocchi!"

I slowly opened my eyes, it was mid-afternoon by the looks of things and three Kaijou players were in the room. Kise was cooing at my son as Moriyama held him, no doubt having got permission from Hyuuga first, Kasamatsu caught my eye and smiled, I returned the smile and found Hyuuga's hand.

"Hey." He softly said. "Sleep well?"

I nodded. "Did I miss anything?"

"Nah, Akashi and Furi left about ten minutes after you fell asleep and these three showed up about five minutes ago. Kagami and Kuroko went back to the apartment with Nigou and we've just been tending to Koichi whilst you slept."

"Do you want anything to eat?" Kiyoshi asked. "You've not eaten since this morning."

I nodded, knowing he'd find something suitable. My eyes fixed back on Moriyama gazing at Koichi, the third year glanced up and smiled at me before moving to my side and handing him back to me. I kissed my son's forehead and nuzzled his neck, he clumsily reached out and touched my cheek as he opened his eyes, they were definitely more green than grey.

"Hey Koichi..." I breathed, kissing his tiny hand. "You have no idea how special you are."

He slowly blinked, the faintest hint of a smile flickering across his face. Kise sighed, looking at us fondly before raising an eyebrow at Kasamatsu, the captain snorted before playfully shoving the blond.

"No."

"But Yukiocchi--"

"Not yet."

I gave the other point guard a puzzled look. He rolled his eyes before explaining that Kise had been trying to get him to agree to have a baby, that he was determined to make the blond seriously think about it before they rushed into anything, something that both Hyuuga and I agreed on.

"Trust me Kise, you'll want to wait until after high-school." I told him. "It'll screw up your basketball career if nothing else."

He shrugged but nodded. Koichi started getting cranky so the Kaijou players left, each saying one last goodbye before seeing themselves out. I tried to soothe the baby but it was clear that he was hungry again.

"I'll wait outside then--" Hyuuga sighed.

"No it's okay...you can stay." I murmured, feeling my cheeks heat up. I couldn't keep kicking them both out everytime I had to feed our son, I'd have to get over it sooner or later. He raised an eyebrow but nodded, asking if I needed any help. I got him to hold Koichi whilst I got the hospital gown out of the way, forcing my embarrassment out of my mind as I accepted my son back into my arms and let him feed. Hyuuga tried not to stare but I wasn't expecting him to fully resist.

"...does it feel weird?" He asked.

"A little. But I suppose this little one needs it so I'll deal with it for a few months." I replied. "But as soon as we can get him onto formula the better. Then I can start taking the drugs to get these to go away."

"...but they look so good on you."

I would've hit him if my hands weren't full. I settled for glaring at him instead as he chuckled and apologised. Kiyoshi returned with a packet of sandwiches for me, he was caught off guard by the sight but recovered quickly. He smiled warmly and kissed my cheek as he set the food on the bedside table.

"You really are a natural."

I rolled my eyes as they both watched. Koichi of course wasn't bothered in the slightest, I somewhat envied him for that. Once he was done, I passed him to Kiyoshi so I could cover myself up again and actually eat. We watched our centre pace the room slowly, rubbing Koichi's back to get him to burp. I was almost ready to fall back to sleep when a knock at the door startled me. Hyuuga got up and answered it, my doctor greeted him and came in, asking how I felt and how the baby was before introducing me to his own son. The elementary school boy peered at me with wide eyes as he slowly approached my side.

"So I hear you saw our match?" I smiled.

He nodded, glancing at his father before smiling back.

"What position do you play?"

"Small forward." He mumbled.

"Oh so like Koganei?"

His face lit up. "Yeah! He's so cool, like in your last match when he stopped that shooter--I wanna be just like him!"

Hyuuga smiled at me as I continued. "He was here earlier actually, do you wanna see if we can get him back here for you?" My captain was already sending a text to our team-mate as the boy looked at his father in awe. Within fifteen minutes the second year duo were back, a little confused until I explained that Koganei had a fan.

"Ooh?" He smiled as the little boy stared at him. "You're a small forward too?"

The two of them got into a very animated conversation, Mitobe smiling fondly at Koganei's enthusiasm as he launched into a dramatic retelling of the Rakuzan encounter with Mibuchi. The doctor took this moment to check Koichi over as he had fallen asleep in Kiyoshi's arms, our son was doing well apparently and would be able to go home with me in another day or two.

"Alright, so we should get going." The doctor declared, trying to usher his son along. Koganei took a split second to find a piece of paper and wrote a small note for the boy, giving it to him with a wink.

Koganei found Mitobe pressing a package into his hands and pointing at me, the second year seemed to remember something as he moved to my side and offered it to me. "We saw this whilst on our way home and thought it would be a nice gift." He beamed.

I unwrapped the package to find a large book of sorts, when I flicked through the pages I found out it was an empty scrapbook, various pages were titled along the lines of 'first birthday' and 'first vacation'. It was pretty clear what it was, I hugged both Koganei and Mitobe before they left again. This time I declared that I wanted to get some rest whilst Koichi slept so if anyone else arrived who wasn't immediate family then they'd have to wait until I woke up. Kiyoshi and Hyuuga nodded and kissed my cheek, I rolled onto my side for the first time since giving birth, wincing slightly at the pain in my lower back but falling asleep surprisingly easily.

 

\---

 

It must've been nearly ten at night when soft cries woke me up, Hyuuga and Kiyoshi were trying to quieten him down but Koichi was having none of it. I sat up and sighed loudly.

"Pass him here." I yawned, reaching out my hands. Kiyoshi smiled as I rocked our son and hushed him. "Come on little one..." I whispered, kissing his forehead as he cried. "You can't be hungry again surely?"

"He might be." Hyuuga murmured, yawning as he sat down and rubbed his face. "Obviously you're the only one who can sort that out."

I nodded, shrugging out of the hospital gown again and letting Koichi feed, he quietened down instantly, looking up at me with wide eyes as I exhaled. Kiyoshi kissed the top of my head as he slipped into bed next to me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and nuzzling my neck.

"At least you'll be able to come home in a day or two." He whispered. "Speaking of which, Junpei's heading home tomorrow to get things set up for the two of you."

"What about school?" I asked. "Don't you both have class?"

Kiyoshi shook his head. "The school's given us the next three days off...they're not happy about it but they said they'd rather we got everything sorted out in three days than getting distracted from our studies."

"And when do they expect me to head back?" I held Koichi close to me, nuzzling his neck as I tried to get him to burp. "I can't bring a baby to school but I can't leave him until I'm no longer nursing him."

Kiyoshi shrugged. "They said they'll discuss your options once you've gotten settled at home."

Having been fed, Koichi fell asleep quickly. I decided to keep hold of him as I probably wasn't going to fall asleep as easily. Hyuuga was asleep in the chair, Kiyoshi chuckled as he draped a blanket over our lover and set his glasses on the table so they wouldn't get broken, he returned to my side and let me snuggle against him as best I could with a baby in my arms. I was vaguely aware of him humming softly, I guessed it was a lullaby by its slowness.

"You'll send me to sleep at this rate." I murmured.

"That's the plan love." He smiled, gently easing Koichi out of my arms and placing him in the small crib, kissing his forehead as he made sure he was wrapped up warmly. "You need rest too."

I let him pull me closer to him once he got back into bed, burying my face in his shirt as he started humming again, he ran his hand through my hair and rubbed my back. I wasn't sure how long he had been awake today but he seemed more than ready to stay up all night so I could rest more. When I woke up a few hours later, he was still awake, caught between scrolling through his phone and keeping an eye on our son.

"...Teppei." I breathed.

"Morning love."

I yawned, pulling away from him and sitting up. "Is there any chance of breakfast?"

"At four am?" He clarified, he was very tired, I could see it in his eyes but he smiled regardless. "I'll go and see what I can find."

"Pass Koichi to me first, in case he wakes up cranky."

I settled back against the pillows with the sleeping baby in my arms, Kiyoshi kissed both our foreheads before he left in search of food. I nuzzled Koichi, this all felt so natural now that I didn't even think twice, he stirred slightly and wrinkled his little nose before going still again, deep in his slumber. A nurse dropped in to check on things, she smiled at Hyuuga fast asleep in the chair and made a remark along the lines of 'like father like son' which got a small chuckle out of me.

"He's the talk of the ward you know." She nodded to Koichi. "Just, he was born so early but he's so healthy. It's almost unheard of."

I smiled. "He's got some pretty special genetics that's for sure."

"I bet your really proud." She remarked, checking my notes.

I shrugged. "More thankful that he's here..." I sighed. "He's caused a stir on our team , and within our rival teams."

"Yeah, we saw that some of the miracles dropped by. He's certainly gonna have friends in high places that's for sure."

"You could say that. He's probably gonna end up with five different god fathers."

She giggled. "Well I'll leave you to it, let us know if you need anything."

Kiyoshi returned shortly afterwards, he had managed to find me some coffee jelly which instantly made me smile. He insisted on feeding it to me so that we didn't disturb Koichi, I murmured my thanks to him between spoonfuls to which he simply smiled and nodded.

"I'll get you some proper breakfast when the food service begins..." He trailed off, yawning before he could finish his sentence. I giggled at his sleepy expression, he finished feeding me the dessert before flicking through the book that Koganei had given me. "I think this is a great idea. It'll be something to look back on when he's older, something to cherish."

"You're so sentimental." I remarked, feeling Koichi wriggle in my arms as he awoke. "Oh...morning little one." I whispered.

"Question is, is he a morning person?" Kiyoshi raised an eyebrow.

Koichi yawned, I couldn't help but smile as he made little noises to get my attention. I mimicked them back at him as I kissed his cheek, he blinked at me and put his hand on my nose, tiny fingers trying to grasp hold of me. I gently replaced my nose with my pinky finger, watching as he closed his fingers around the digit.

"Look Teppei..." I breathed. "He's holding my finger..."

"Hold still."

I was about to question him when I heard his phone's camera shutter go off. I spent a few more moments gently moving my finger from side to side, Koichi keeping hold of it all the while. Eventually he started to get a little moody, I wasn't surprised.

"Someone's hungry." I murmured, having mastered the art of shrugging out of the hospital gown with one arm I didn't even need to ask Kiyoshi for help. My lover watched as our son quickly settled again once he was being fed, I was almost completely fine with it all but it was still unnerving to be watched. "Do you wanna get Junpei up so he can freshen up before any visitors arrive?"

"Sure love."

I watched as Kiyoshi walked over and gently shook Hyuuga, the captain stirred and found his glasses. He let Kiyoshi kiss him softly before he approached me and pressed a quick kiss to my cheek.

"Morning." He whispered, stroking Koichi's hair. "Hey little guy."

"Morning babe." I replied with a smile.

"Did you get much rest?"

I nodded. "A few hours. He slept through most of it apparently, or he didn't need feeding at least."

Kiyoshi had taken up residence in the chair now, trying to stay awake but looking more and more exhausted as time went on. Hyuuga noticed and basically told the other at he'd stay with me throughout the day and that Kiyoshi should go home and get some proper rest. At first the gentle giant declined, saying that his grandparents were visiting today and he wanted to be here, but Hyuuga was stubborn and they came to the compromise that Kiyoshi would ask his grandparents to visit later in the day so he could go home, sleep and then come back again.

"Do you want me to look after Koichi whilst you freshen up babe?" Hyuuga asked once Koichi was done feeding.

"If you could, I'd appreciate it." I smiled.

He accepted our son into his arms, kissing my cheek quickly before I slipped out of bed. My body was slowly recovering, it still hurt to move but I was getting used to not carrying a baby. Once I had freshened up, I walked out of the small en-suite I found Kiyoshi asleep and Hyuuga quietly murmuring to Koichi. He caught my eye but didn't stop talking, even as I got back into bed and rested my head on his shoulder.

"We may be young and a bit hopeless at this whole 'parenting' thing son, but I promise that we'll do our best to raise you right, to love you as much as possible and to give you the best start in life. We admit you were a...uh--"

"Surprise." I finished.

"Yeah, you were a surprise, some will say we're not ready but I reckon we'll do just fine. You've got a load of uncles who are more than happy to help us out, you'll learn a lot from them, although take whatever Koganei says with a pinch of salt or you might get in trouble with Mitobe."

I giggled, gazing at Koichi's content expression as Hyuuga continued talking.

"And don't repeat any English that Kagami teaches you cause it's probably swear words. And if Kuroko teaches you how to disappear then--"

"Junpei you're rambling." I murmured. "Plus he won't remember anything you just said."

He smiled. "Hear that Koichi? He's already trying to teach you not to listen to me."

I playfully clipped him around the ear. He chuckled and caught my lips with his, a slow and sweet kiss being exchanged before Koichi made a small noise at being ignored, I kissed his forehead before taking advantage of Hyuuga's kindness and declaring that I was gonna try and grab some more sleep before the day really got going.

"Sleep well babe. I love you." He hummed, running a hand through my hair as I pulled the blankets around myself.

"I love you too, all three of you." I replied, catching his hand and kissing it.

 


	23. Rest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's back? (No not Hanamiya although we almost shared a birthday) 
> 
> So I had a wonderful week of sleeping, dying from feels thanks to Haikyuu! (I'm only 9 eps in, what a loser I am.), and planning some future projects...yeah I have big plans for the next few months! Also my 20th birthday was pretty boring and I spent the following day hiking up a mountain with my best friend, I only nearly died twice.
> 
> Anyway, thank-you all for being so patient, I appreciate you tolerating my absence for the past week after pretty much daily updates since...November? As I said, I got big plans for fanfic so I'm itching to get going.

 

"Are you sure?" I murmured.

"Yeah, Teppei's got it covered. You need to relax babe."

I nodded, the steam in the bathroom from the hot water was already misting up the mirror above the sink. Hyuuga pulled me into a hug, I had been released from hospital two days early because both me and Koichi were doing well. I was tired but between feeding Koichi and having guests, I hadn't gotten much sleep, both my alphas had decided to take matters into their own hands; Kiyoshi volunteering to tend to Koichi whilst Hyuuga stated that he was going to help me relax.

"Come on." He breathed, gently tugging at my shirt. I let him help me out of my clothes.

I still ached in some areas which was why Hyuuga demanded I let him run me a bath, I hadn't really anticipated that he'd be taking the bath _with_ me but it was a pleasant surprise. As I relaxed in his hold, the warm water soothing my sore muscles, he pressed light kisses to my shoulders, hands running down my arms and dipping beneath the water. Gentle fingers stroked my stomach, arms protectively wrapped around me as he pressed his chest to my back.

"You're so beautiful." He whispered, nuzzling my neck. "And you've given us a beautiful baby."

I hummed in response, finding one of his hands and linking our fingers together. "If only my body would hurry up and go back to normal."

He chuckled, reaching for a bottle of lotion. "Don't fret about it. Give it time, just focus on getting back into the swing of things."

I sat up again, letting him rub lotion onto my aching back, taking care to not press too hard or pull on the already tense muscles. As his hands moved to my lower back I let out a small moan, his thumbs massaging the soreness that had been left after the birth.

"...I can actually feel how tense you are here." He breathed, an air of humour in his voice. "You should let Teppei give you a proper massage."

I smiled. "Maybe..."

He washed away the lotion, stroking my back as he did so, his hands cautiously slipped around to hold my chest. A small noise of surprise left my throat as he kissed my neck, thumbs swiping over my nipples as he curled his fingers around my small rounded breasts. I let out a shaky breath as I felt him squeeze lightly.

"Are you sure you want to get rid of them?" He asked, lips brushing against my ear.

I hesitantly nodded. "I don't like them..."

"Okay, it's okay." He murmured. "Just curious."

I nodded, covering his hands with my own as I turned to look at him. Our lips met slowly, parting and tenderly slipping tongues against one another. He smiled, breaking away from my lips and kissing my jawline, sighing and pulling me into his hold even more. The water lapped at the sides of the tub, I felt more at ease as he simply held me, whispering occasionally in my ear but for the most part remaining silent.

"I'm sleepy..." I breathed after a while.

"Say no more." He replied with a kiss to my neck, reaching for a towel.

We got out, him making sure I got the fluffier of the two towels, before he led me into the bedroom. I lazily put on the clothes I had grown accustomed to wearing to bed; Kiyoshi's old jersey and a pair of loose sweatpants, whilst Hyuuga went to find out what our other lover was doing. I was vaguely aware that it was near noon and we'd have a few more hours before either our room-mates returned or any visitors came around. I knew already that Riko was planning on dropping by after practice and that Takao was probably intending to visit too.

When Hyuuga returned, I was already led on top of the bed sheets drifting in an out of sleep. He chuckled softly and ran a hand through my hair as he made a remark to Kiyoshi who was in the doorway with our son sound asleep in his arms. I felt the bed dip on both sides of me before I caught Koichi's scent in front of me; a blend of all three of ours but unique in its own way. I stirred, somewhat fully awake as I gazed at the sleeping infant on the bed next to me. Wrapping an protective arm around him as I moved him close to my chest, he nuzzled the space between my breasts but remained asleep.

"You should sleep too." Kiyoshi hummed, hand coming to stroke my cheek. "They say the mother should sleep when the baby does."

I nodded, letting my eyes slip shut. "Teppei?"

"Hmm?"

"Can you and Junpei make me dinner later?"

"I'm sure we can manage that love." He replied. "You just focus on resting."

Hyuuga gently kissed my cheek as he draped a blanket over me, leaving me with Kiyoshi and shutting the door quietly. I easily fell asleep as Kiyoshi quietly got on with some school work, Koichi slept soundly in my embrace for a while, his soft cries waking me. I kissed his chubby cheeks, cooing quietly as he stopped crying and gazed at me with glassy eyes.

"Someone's a bit cranky isn't he?" I smiled, sitting up and gathering him in my arms. "What am I going to do with you?"

His hand reached up and tried to grip the chain around my neck, the disc slipping between his fingers as he stared at it in awe. I gently took his hand away and showed him the compass engraving. Kiyoshi was watching fondly as I recalled  to our son what Hyuuga had said to me when he gave me the necklace.

"So if you ever need advice later on in life, then you can always ask me. I'll try to point you in the right direction." I smiled again, kissing Koichi's forehead. He continued to try and take the necklace, only succeeding in wrapping his fingers around the dainty gold chain occasionally.

"Give him a few months and he'll actually be trying to take it from you." Kiyoshi murmured.

"I know...." I smiled. "But I think we can deal with that can't we?" I gazed at Koichi's wide eyes, they seemed greener than yesterday but maybe that was just the lighting.

"Whatever you say love."

 

\---

 

Koichi was being difficult when Riko arrived, he had refused to feed and no amount of me nuzzling his neck could get him to settle down. Admitting defeat, I gave him to Hyuuga as our coach gave me a sympathetic smile and sat with me in the lounge. She handed me some of the school work that had built up since I went into hospital and offered to help me go through it if I got stuck.

"You look exhausted." She sighed.

"I feel it." I murmured, casting the textbooks aside on the coffee table. "It's not that he's not sleeping, I just feel drained all the time..." I stifled a yawn.

She nodded. "Well it's not even been a week yet, give it some time and you'll get back into it."

"How's the team holding up?" I asked, desperate to talk about something else before she started lecturing me. "Furihata doing okay?"

Riko laughed, looking slightly flustered as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "He's only gone and landed himself the captain of Rakuzan as his alpha."

I rolled my eyes. "Well...we all saw it coming didn't we? What about you? You and Momoi good?"

Her cheeks flared red. "H-How...oh the Christmas thing..." She pouted slightly. "We're good thanks. She's been all over this pregnancy thing and keeps asking if I've seen Koichi yet and how you're doing--and whether Kuroko's involved."

It was my turn to laugh as I remembered the other's obsession with Kuroko, her enthusiasm was something to be seen but thankfully she didn't seem too focused on me. I yawned, listening to Riko giving me all the details on how the team was progressing without their regular point guard; Furihata was getting used to working with Kagami and Kuroko, Koganei had been working on his shooting skills and Mitobe had be filling in for Kiyoshi more and more. The others were doing well at encouraging them, as far as I could tell the team was coming into its own and becoming self-sufficient.

Admittedly, I was somewhat disappointed that they could carry on without me.

"But we'll be keen to get you back into it as soon as your ready Shun." She finished. "Furi's good but he's still rough around the edges and I think that he could use with watching you play more. That and he's had little to no experience under Hyuuga's captaincy in an official match, Tsuchida's been filling in with both of you out but obviously Hyuuga's going to be back to his post for inter-high."

I nodded, picking at the hem of my shirt. "So when do you think I'll be able to come back?"

"Well, physically it'll be whenever you're not sore. However you'll have to sort out childcare, I can't have a baby in the gym...sorry."

I shrugged. "I expected as much. I'm sure my mom will be happy to babysit."

Her hand on top of mine startled me, I looked up at her and saw the tell-tell stern face that meant whatever she was about to say was serious and that I wasn't allowed to argue. "Don't rush it. You've got to think about more than yourself here, don't just hand Koichi to your family as soon as possible. Take some time to get used to being a parent, for his sake."

It was the same old speech I had been given by numerous people; I understood that we all needed time to adapt but at the same time I was getting restless, I hadn't played since the Winter cup and I was paranoid I'd lose my touch if I didn't get back into it soon. It was easy for Hyuuga and Kiyoshi; they could just walk into the gym and continue at the same level they walked out at, I however would have to get used to playing without the extra weight of a baby.

"Yeah." I mumbled. "Yeah I get it."

Her expression softened. "Once he's a few months old you can probably bring him with you, no doubt the team will go crazy over him."

"Well we're a pack after all." I replied. "And Koichi's the latest addition."

Kiyoshi interrupted our discussion by walking out of the bedroom in a fit of giggles, I raised an eyebrow at he told us how Hyuuga was dealing with the whole concept of changing a diaper, apparently the captain didn't exactly have a strong stomach. Riko laughed before going to see the chaos for herself, I declined, I didn't need to know what my lover was struggling with. The front door opened and our two house-mates returned home from going grocery shopping, they heard Hyuuga and Riko bickering in the other room but decided not to comment, Nigou bounded onto the couch and whined at me, missing his newest friend.

"I mean, if you _really_ want to go and add to the chaos..." I remarked, picking the puppy up, slipping him into the bedroom and closing the door behind him. Kuroko and I waited on the other side of the door and heard Hyuuga freak out suddenly as Nigou no doubt tried to 'help' the situation.

Kagami shook his head, smiling as he started picking out things to cook for dinner, Kiyoshi interrupted him and told him that he'd sort out dinner for everyone that evening. The ace was surprised but nodded, leaving the kitchen and picking Kuroko up from behind in a playful manner. The shadow let out a small noise of surprise that made both of us laugh, he glanced over his shoulder at Kagami with a small smile before finding himself dropped on the couch. I opted to leave them to it and investigate what my poor son was having to put up with.

"He's fine." Riko told me as Hyuuga sighed heavily.

"Who? Him or Koichi?" I smirked, scooping up the infant in my arms. "Did daddy epically fail again?"

"Hey! I'm getting the hang of it." Hyuuga scowled. "He just... _moves_ a lot when I'm trying to get it done up."

Riko put her hands up in defence and made a hasty exit. "Well he's only going to get more mobile." I sighed, approaching my lover and reaching up to stroke his cheek. "It's okay, I know it's hard."

He blushed slightly. "I'm starting to wonder if I'm cut out for this whole parenting thing..."

Koichi's hand reached out towards Hyuuga, I smiled and passed him to my lover, watching as Hyuuga seemed caught off guard for a moment until a relieved smile spread across his face.

"I think you're doing great Junpei. Both you and Teppei are." I told him. "Sure there's a lot of sleepless nights ahead, and we're all gonna have our off days, days where we question if we're doing the right thing, days when we wish we weren't so reckless back then...but there'll be days where we're thankful for it all too."

He leaned over and kissed me, nuzzling my neck as he pulled away and focused his gaze on our son. "You always know what to say Shun..." he murmured. "How do you do it?"

"I'm not pack mother for nothing." I smiled. "But seriously Junpei, you may think you're hopeless and I may joke about it but we're in this boat together, so we're gonna be hopeless at it together."

"All three of us." Kiyoshi's voice from the doorway startled me, he smiled warmly at us before coming up behind me and hugging me. "We'll be okay. As long as we stick together and share the responsibility, I think Koichi will grow up just fine."

Hyuuga nodded. "Y-Yeah...yeah he will."

 

\---

 

I had finally managed to get Koichi to sleep, we hadn't had the time to properly sort out his crib yet so he was currently sleeping in a nest of blankets and one of my shirts, regardless, I sighed heavily as I rubbed my eyes.

"If you need someone to watch him then me and Shin-chan won't mind~" Takao remarked from beside me on the couch. The Shuutoku ace raised an eyebrow behind his glasses at being volunteered for babysitting duties but said nothing.

"Nah...not yet." I smiled. "In a month or two when I've not slept in three days."

He chuckled. "He'll settle down a bit more probably. And then we can start giving you days off!"

"Oh really?" I murmured, sapped of all energy as Kiyoshi was finishing up preparing dinner. "What exactly do you have in mind?"

Takao shrugged. "Whatever really, just getting you out of this apartment would be a good start."

"What's wrong with my apartment?" Kagami asked, narrowing his eyes slightly.

"Nothing!" Takao sighed. "But Izuki's been cooped up for too long, he needs to get out more."

I tuned out of their bickering, trying to resist the urge to fall asleep right then and there. I was brought out of my dozing by a gentle hand on my shoulder, Kuroko offered me a bowl what I assumed was natto. I ate it without thought, grateful that my friends were looking out for me whilst I was being pretty useless. I wasn't given much time to idly sit and pretend to not be tired, Kiyoshi gently picked me up and pressed a kiss to my cheek, I wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my face in his shirt.

Once in the bedroom he carefully placed me on the bed, at first I wouldn't let go of him. He chuckled slightly and kissed me until I released my hold on him, it was dark outside but the soft glow of the bedside lamp kept the room illuminated enough for me to see his calm face and sleepy smile.

"Stay..." I murmured, catching his hand before he pulled away. "Please Teppei."

His smile grew a little more. "Just let me go and tell Junpei, I'll be back in a minute I promise."

I nodded, letting him go. Koichi was still asleep in his make-shift bed as I sighed. The day had been a blur really, I wasn't sure if it was because I was getting used to always being tired or whether I was ignoring most of the looming questions by sleeping too much. Living with Kagami and Kuroko was great but we couldn't stay here forever, we'd be pushing it if we stayed past the summer, we needed to get our own place but that required money, money that three high school students didn't have. I tried not to think about it, there were a million and one other things we had to think about first from how I was going to pass my second year to how we were even going to raise a son during our third year.

Kiyoshi returned, shutting the door quietly before lying next to me, I rolled over to face him and stroked his cheek. He took my hand and kissed it tenderly, letting me shuffle closer to him and sigh in content. A protective arm wrapped around me, fingers lightly stroking the space between my shoulder blades as I sleepily gazed into his eyes. Lips pressed against mine, slow and soft, I let out a small whimper as I parted mine and returned the kiss. He broke away and kissed his way down my neck, drawing me closer and humming quietly.

"I love you so much." I whispered, running a hand through his hair as he nuzzled my neck.

"I love you too." He replied, gently pulling back and regarding me with bright brown eyes. "Now you should sleep love."

I smiled weakly. "Do you really think we can pull this off Teppei? This whole...juggling parenthood and high school thing."

He brushed away a few strands of my hair that had fallen across my eyes, hand caressing my cheek as he smiled back. "We will. I have faith in you and Junpei."

"But there's so much to think about, like we can't stay here indefinitely and burden Kagami. Koichi's going to need someone to look after him when I eventually go back to school, heck Hyuuga's only just gotten a job and we don't have a lot of savings--"

He nodded, shushing me with gentle back-rubs. "I know. I'm working on it Shun."

"But--"

"Hey, come on don't get worked up now. We'll discuss it with Junpei when things are a little less hectic. Don't worry about it for now, you're a great mom to Koichi and you just need to focus on that and catching up with your school work."

"Less hectic..." I repeated. "When's that gonna be? In case you didn't realise; we have a baby to look after, things won't be calm for a few years yet."

He chuckled. "I meant when you're feeling more like yourself...besides, it's been nearly six months since...uh."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "What?"

He averted his gaze slightly. "So you know how heats come twice a year?"

"Oh no...no you're not telling me that you're both due another heat are you? Teppei I physically _can't_ \--"

"I know, but obviously we're still...our bodies will...look it'll be okay but I'm just warning you."

I shook my head, this wasn't happening. I turned away from him and willed myself not to get emotional over such a trivial thing. He was understandably confused by my sudden retreat and tried to get me to tell him what was wrong. I sniffed loudly and tried to hold back the tears threatening to fall.

"Shun...come on I didn't mean to make you upset." He whispered, finding my hand and squeezing it. "We won't force you into anything--"

"That’s not it." I breathed, glancing over my shoulder at him. "I-It's stupid don't worry."

He hummed, shifting so he was leaning over me with a hand either side of me. I hazarded a glance at him and saw worry across his face which only made me feel even worse.

"Talk to me..." He pleaded quietly, brushing his cheek against mine. "I don't care how stupid it is, tell me please."

I exhaled heavily, hastily wiping my tears away. We held each other's gaze for a few seconds before I finally gave in. "...the only time we've ever done it was during my heat...a-and I don't want it to just be a 'heat' thing..."

"You want--"

"I want to make love...I-I mean...do it because we want to not because instincts tell us to." I babbled, covering my blushing face with my hands, embarrassment taking over even though this was a reasonable thing to want from both my boyfriends.

He let the smallest chuckle escape him before he pulled my hands away. "I see. Well once you're not sore I'm sure we can arrange for someone to look after Koichi for an afternoon..."

His expression was one that put me at ease, he gently swiped his thumb over my tear-stained cheek and smiled. I nodded in agreement and sniffed loudly.

"O-Okay...um..."

"You're so cute when you're flustered."

I stuck my tongue out at him in response, he snorted and kissed my forehead before settling back down beside me, pulling me into his embrace. Sleep came easily to me as I listened to his steady heartbeat, feeling his protective hold on me and his warmth surrounding me.  



	24. Slowly

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, we hit two milestones! This fic has passed 4,000 hits and it's just about gone past 100,000 words (give or take a few hundred) which absolutely insane. So I jsut want to say thank you so much to all of you that have lent your support to this fic, all the kudos and comments make me smile and give me a reason to get up in the mornings. :3
> 
> I don't really have anything else to say actually...that's a first.

 

"So, it's Sunday tomorrow so that means neither me nor Teppei have work, Kagami's at Kuroko's house for the afternoon and someone's parents can look after Koichi if we need them to. What do you wanna do?" Hyuuga smiled as he handed me the hot chocolate he had made for me. Koichi was led on my chest asleep, face buried between my breasts so he was right next to my heart.

"Dunno...I need to catch up on the work you guys gave me..." I murmured, gently stroking my son's head, fingers running through the fine hair on his head.

"Pft, forget about it..." He chuckled. "Let Teppei's grandparents look after Koichi for a few hours and have some alone time with us."

I hummed as I took a sip of the sweet drink, it was certainly an attractive thought. Although it would be the first time we would be apart since the birth, I wasn't sure how well Koichi would react. When I voiced this concern to both Hyuuga and Kiyoshi they nodded, Kiyoshi pointed out that we needed to get him used to being apart from me for when I officially went back to school in just over a month. He was right, but I wasn't sure.

"You don't have to obviously." He told me. "But my nanna would be more than happy to look after him if you want her to."

Koichi had woken up and was watching me intently with wide eyes, he kept opening his mouth and pressing his tiny lips to my chest almost as if he was trying to bite me. I smiled at him and kissed his forehead, passing him to Hyuuga so I could curl up in Kiyoshi's hold.

"I guess...it's gotta happen sooner or later right? But do you think he's ready?"

Kiyoshi chuckled, wrapping an arm around me and hugging me tightly. "If he's anything like you, then I think he'll be fine."

I watched as he used his free hand to get his phone out, he dialled his home number and waited. There was a light conversation between him and his grandmother before he asked if she was able to look after Koichi tomorrow afternoon, she said she only planned to do some knitting and that she'd love to look after her great-grandson. I cast my gaze to Hyuuga who was whispering to Koichi, he had almost mastered the art of rocking our son to sleep, his trick was to start telling him about one of the warlords from ancient times and that seemed to send Koichi to sleep within a few moments.

"So, what _do_ you want to do tomorrow?" Kiyoshi asked quietly as he pocketed his phone again.

I shrugged. "Sleep...cuddle..."

"...make love?" He breathed. I stiffened, I hadn't thought about that since I broke down that night, I didn't expect him to suggest it.

"Maybe...but--" I blushed, not wanting to say what was worrying me about it all.

"But what love?"

"...I'm still sore down there...I-I don't think I could take...you."

For a moment I thought he was going to laugh, he held it back but couldn't stop the smile on his face. "I thought as much."

"I'm sorry." I whimpered, he hugged me a little tighter.

"Don't be, it's reasonable." He purred in my ear. "I'm sure Junpei can oblige...and there's more to it than _that_ anyway."

I gently kissed his cheek, feeling reserved about the idea. He rubbed my arm comfortingly, probably sensing my unease. It's not that I didn't want to, it was more that this would be the first full week I'd be left home alone with Koichi, I wouldn't see my friends, I wouldn't be at practice, I probably wouldn't leave the house. Maybe Takao was right after all, being cooped up wasn't doing me any favours, maybe getting out of the house instead would be a better idea.

"Don't fret about it, if you don't want to then we don't have to. It's just an idea."

"I know, I-I'll think about it."

Sleep came easily that night but didn't last long. A loud thud from Kagami's room startled me awake, it also spooked Koichi who started bawling, irritatingly both Hyuuga and Kiyoshi seemed to sleep through it as I crawled out of bed in the darkness and flicked the tiny table lamp on next to Koichi's crib. I sighed heavily as I picked him up and decided to take him into the lounge, wrapping a small blanket around him as I shouldered the door open.

He wouldn't stop crying. I paced the lounge, trying my best to soothe him but I was on the verge of tears myself, wanting sleep so badly but having a crying baby was stopping that. He quietened down a little but was still crying, I kissed his head and rubbed his back, cooing softly as I mentally preyed to every deity that he'd calm down soon.

"It's okay little one..." I murmured, walking to the window where I could see the lights of Tokyo in the darkness. "There's nothing to be scared of, I'm here...mommy's here..."

He let out another cry before gradually going quiet, sniffing loudly as his small hands gripped the blanket. I smiled slightly, nuzzling his neck and exhaling. There was no way he was asleep, although it would be easy to get him to sleep again, so I paced the room a little more, lightly rocking him. The sound of a door opening caught me off guard and nearly set him off again.

"Oh shit..." Kagami grumbled once he realised what was happening. "I didn't wake him did I?"

I shushed Koichi enough to assure he wasn't going to start crying again. "What was that thud? That's what set him off in the first place." I failed to keep my irritation out of my voice.

Kagami rubbed his face. "I...fell out of bed." He admitted. "S-Sorry Shun."

I sighed, I wasn't mad at him, more annoyed. He walked into the kitchen and poked around in the fridge for a moment before retreating back to his room with another muttered apology. My attention was back on my son as he found my chain again and tugged on it, I somewhat wished that Kuroko was here so that Nigou could try and comfort Koichi but alas, the shadow had to spend _some_ time at home after all.

"Come on then..." I whispered to him, tickling his chin. "Let's get you back to bed."

He only blinked in response, I kissed his forehead as I set him down, dwelling at the side of his crib for a few moments until sleep beckoned me. The gap I had left between Kiyoshi and Hyuuga was no longer there, our captain had rolled over and even Kuroko wouldn't be able to fit in the tiny space between the two of them. With another heavy sigh, I concluded that there was no way to sleep in the bed with them like that, I found a spare blanket in the dresser and made for the lounge.

 

\---

 

The smell of toast woke me up, I opened one eye lazily and found the lights on despite the sunlight outside. As I sat up, I was greeted by a guilty looking Hyuuga holding a plate of toast .

"Morning." He spoke softly, setting the plate down on the table in front of me. "So...I guess it's a stupid question to ask--"

"Shit." I cut him off. "Taiga fell out of bed and woke Koichi up, neither of you two seemed to hear it though. I spent half an hour calming him down and when I got him to finally settle down you had rolled over into the gap I left in the bed."

He didn't say anything for a moment, he weakly smiled and gently pushed my legs aside so he could sit down. "We're sorry Shun."

I took a piece of toast and bit into it, trying not to appear as annoyed as I was. He set his hand down on my thigh and was rubbing gentle circles through the blanket. I could hear Kiyoshi in the bedroom talking to Koichi, I didn't care to know if Kagami was awake or not, I didn't blame him for waking up Koichi but I wasn't jumping for joy at the whole incident either.

"So, did you have any more idea about what you--"

"Sleep." I stated, not looking at him. "On the account I didn't get more than four hours of it."

His hand paused, I glanced at him as he adjusted his glasses and exhaled. "Okay. Whatever you say."

"Damn straight." I uttered under my breath, not quietly enough for him not to hear.

"Look, I said we're sorry." He almost snapped, voice softening slightly. "Just let it go."

I gave him an incredulous look. "Let it go?" I repeated.

He rubbed his forehead. "I-I mean."

"I know what you mean Junpei, you just think that I need to 'get over' these hormones and that I'll be back to the pun-tastic point guard. Well guess what? _I had a baby_ , I'm not going to 'go back' any time soon." I replied, standing up. "Why doesn't anyone understand that I'm not allowed to be 'the old Izuki' anymore? I have to be a mother Junpei!"

He clenched his jaw, as I turned away. I carded my hands through my hair and took a deep breath. A door opened and I guessed either Kiyoshi or Kagami had overheard and were checking on us. My body was trembling slightly from the tiredness and this surge of emotions.

"Shun, I never said--"

"You didn't have to!" I snapped.

I heard him sigh heavily. I felt guilty but I was getting more and more irritable. Kagami's voice broke the silence that fell, he told us that he was gonna leave early for Kuroko's house so we could have some more time alone, Hyuuga acknowledged him but said nothing more as the door closed again. I decided to take a shower, maybe it would help me wake up a little bit and shake away some of the irritation. I didn't so much as glance at him as I passed on my way to the bathroom, grabbing a fresh towel before locking myself in.

For a few moments, I didn't move, pressing my forehead against the door as I heard Hyuuga pace into the bedroom and mutter something to Kiyoshi. My hand clenched into a fist as I turned away from the door and started the shower, I stripped off my clothes and stepped under the spray, hissing at the heat but relishing the effect it had on my aching back. How I came to be sat on the floor of the shower wasn't important, the water drumming onto the back of my head as I held my head in my hand helped soothe my headache. The mirror had steamed up long ago and the water was only warm on the account I was taking the first shower of the day, it wouldn't be long before it went cold.

"Shun?" Kiyoshi's voice broke my thought process, he tried to open the door but it was locked. "Hey are you okay?"

"I'm fine." I called out, shutting my eyes tightly as I sat up and leaned back so the water cascaded down my face and chest.

"You've been in there for nearly an hour..." He replied. "I heard your fight with Junpei--"

"Leave me alone." I cut him off, leaning forward enough to not get a mouth full of water. "I'll come out when I'm damn ready to."

I knew I was being over-dramatic but I was getting sick of them both trying to read my mind when it came to my actions. Couldn't a guy take an hour long shower? I rubbed the back of my neck, watching the water run down the drain as I contemplated what I'd even say to them.

"Well Koichi needs feeding soon..." His voice trailed off, I heard him lightly knock as if he put his fist to the door in defeat. "Try not to take much longer."

"Kay." I replied.

I sat there until I felt the water grow colder, when I stepped out I did feel a little better but I was still very tired as I dried myself off and lazily got dressed again. Wiping away the condensation on the mirror, I caught sight of how rough I looked; the shadows under my eyes and the few pimples that had broken out due to stress to name a few imperfections.

"Fuck sake..." I breathed, staring at my reflection.

When I eventually unlocked the door, I found Hyuuga sat on the floor outside. He startled slightly as I froze in the doorway, I wasn't sure what to say as he got to his feet and ran a hand through his hair.

"Hey, um...can we talk?"

I swallowed. "Sure."

He gestured to the bedroom, I nodded and followed him wondering what he was going to bring up this time. I noted how the apartment was empty except for the two of us so my nerves started rising, it was probably nothing but those three words were infamous for preceding bad news.

"Sit." He told me, I held his gaze for a split second before sitting on the edge of the bed. I didn't say anything as he sat next to me and took my hand in his. "Teppei's taking Koichi to his grandmother's...and Kagami already left for Kuroko's." He explained.

"I thought Koichi needed feeding." I uttered, not looking at him.

"I...hm...I don't know."

I shrugged, taking my hand away from his. "What do you want to talk about?"

"About earlier...I didn't mean to snap at you."

I was too tired to be dealing with this, I really didn't want to be having this conversation until I had slept but like hell was he going to let me sleep now. "I see."

"And I know it's gonna be hard for you to adapt, and I'm sorry that I can't fully understand what you're going through--but you've got to let me and Teppei in for us to help you."

"I don't _have_ to do anything." I uttered.

"Shun, you said so yourself, you're not going back to how you were before. Let us help you grow into your new role...please...we're all scared as _fuck_ about the future babe but we're here for you--"

"And how exactly do you propose to 'help' me huh?" I turned to look at him and saw the hurt in his eyes, I was torn between bursting into tears and walking straight out into the cold January air.

"I don't know...Shun I _don't know_ okay? All I know is that we have a son and he needs us to pull our shit together."

"Us?!" I exclaimed, standing up and pacing away from him. "Oh _real_ classy Junpei...because you're totally the one who went through your entire fucking body changing, getting looked at like some sort of freak, having to give up the sport you love for it all...because you're totally the one who presented as an omega and was scared to death that once his friends found out he'd be treated differently. Yeah, I admit I totally need to pull my shit together but don't you fucking dare try to tell me that you've had a hard--"

I whirled around and saw him with his head in his hands, all malice left me as I heard him sob, my chest ached as I processed what was happening.

"...you're right." He stated bitterly. "I've got nothing on what I forced you through. All I've had to do is try to figure out how to provide for you, how to avoid my parents disowning me, how to deal with mood swings and being a father. Sure, Teppei and I have nothing on you."

I took a step towards him, he refused to look at me.

"...but I'd fucking die for you." He breathed, gaze fixed on the floor.

I shook my head, trying to wrap my head around everything that was just said by both of us. My mind was numb, my heart was racing, chest heaving and hands shaking as I sunk to my knees. He took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes, still not looking at me as I stared at him half in disbelief at my own outburst, half in shock at his admission.

"...you didn't force me into anything." I spoke softly, a few moments of silence had passed and the lump in my throat was threatening to make me cry. "I chose to go through with it."

"You shouldn't have had to make that decision." He mumbled. "We should've been more careful."

"True...but you did ask me. When I was a mess in that locker room you both asked if I wanted you to...and I pretty much said yes."

"Probably the heat talking." He sighed. "If I recall, you asked us to be gentle..."

I let a weak smile tug at the corners of my mouth. "You were gentler than Imayoshi."

"...great." He sounded defeated. I gingerly got to my feet and approached him, taking his hands in mine and kissing them both before placing them on my waist, I then coaxed him to look at me as I stood in front of him. His glassy green eyes regarded me silently, I leaned down and pressed my lips to his in a chaste kiss.

"Regardless." I murmured, straightening up again. "We have a son now...he has your eyes y'know."

The faintest of smiles flickered across his face, he sniffed and leaned forward, pressing his face to my stomach. I ran my hands through his hair and down to his shoulders, giving them a slow massage as he held my waist as if I was made of china. The apartment door opened and Kiyoshi walked into the bedroom, he paused and regarded the scene in front of him before shutting the bedroom door quietly.

"Teppei..." I breathed, reaching out a hand for him. He nodded and met my outstretched hand before sitting next to Hyuuga and pulling him into a bear hug. I stood there looking awkward for a moment as our captain completely broke, sobbing and murmuring apologies into Kiyoshi's shirt.

"Okay...so does someone want to tell me what happened?" He asked as Hyuuga pulled away from him. "Spare me the gory details if you want..."

We took it in turns to recount the hurtful things that we had said, both of us nearly breaking into sobs again before Kiyoshi nodded and put up a hand to silence us both. He coaxed me to sit in his lap as he hugged me, reaching out a hand to stroke Hyuuga's cheek at the same time.

"So it sounds to me, like we need to have some serious alone time. What a coincidence that our son is with my nanna so we have around...six hours until Kagami gets home?"

"What did you have in mind then?" Hyuuga uttered, rubbing his red eyes again.

"Well, you need sleep." He smiled at me. "And we should probably sort some food out...after that though I'm not sure."

"I-I can stay awake a while longer..." I whispered, adrenaline and having a fight with Hyuuga had given me a brief burst of energy.

"Oh really?" Kiyoshi teased, gaining a small giggle from me. "Well...there seems to be a lot of tension between us--"

"Sex rarely solves things like this." Hyuuga cut in.

"No, but making love does."

"Oh god don't say it like that."

"Like what?"

"...you make it sound like we want another baby."  
   
Kiyoshi rolled his eyes. "Really Junpei...you think making love is all about sex?"

Our captain seemed caught off guard by that question, I giggled as Kiyoshi gently set me down in the middle of the bed and asked me to lie on my stomach. I was curious as he gently coerced me to remove my shirt, his fingers trailing down my bare back before he started pressing his thumbs to my tense muscles. I bit my lip slightly as he rubbed large circles either side of my spine, applying just the right enough pressure to pull a few soft moans from me.

"That's it..." He breathed as I began to relax under his touch. "You really are tense aren't you?"

I hummed in agreement, letting my eyes slip shut. Hyuuga's hand ran through my hair, settling on the back of my neck and lightly rubbing the soreness that had come from sleeping on the couch. Kiyoshi's fingers made their way up my torso slowly, he started pressing light kisses to my shoulders as he took one of Hyuuga's hands and taught him to mirror his actions.

"It's quite easy." He told the other. "Just don't press too hard."

I could tell the difference in confidence as Kiyoshi rolled to the side to simply watch as Hyuuga's hands replaced his on my back. I opened my eyes to regard Kiyoshi silently as the knots in my back were eased, he smiled fondly at me, finding my hand and giving it a squeeze.

"Has he fallen asleep?" Hyuuga asked after I had been quiet for a while.

"He's getting there." Kiyoshi replied, sitting up and coaxing me to roll onto my back, at first I wanted to cover my chest but slowly let my arms fall either side of my head on the pillow. They both tried not to stare but I could tell they were both curious still.

"Can you not..." I breathed, averting my gaze.

Hyuuga cleared his throat. "Sorry..." He leaned over me, nuzzling my neck as my hands went to tangle in his hair. He smiled as he rested his forehead against mine. "You're amazing."

I snorted, feeling Kiyoshi's fingers running up and down my stomach. "Not really."

He stole my lips, quick shallow kisses making me breathless. My eyes slipped shut somewhere along the lines, opening them as he slowly pulled away, his lips were slightly pinker than usual as he let out a breathy chuckle. Kiyoshi took advantage of our pause for air, gently tilting my face to face him and slowly kissing me. I let out a small whimper as my lips parted against his, he smiled into the kiss and tenderly slid his tongue against mine. Hyuuga's fingers had been tracing my collarbone, dipping down to my chest and swiping his thumb over my nipple, I moaned against Kiyoshi's lips and pulled away from him to object about being touched.

"I know." Hyuuga hummed in my ear, his hand moving lower down my body. "You don't like to be touched there."

"...it's nothing personal." I whispered, glancing at both of them in turn.

"We know love." Kiyoshi replied, watching at Hyuuga's fingers ran along the waistband of my shorts. "It's okay, it's all on your terms."

I nodded, pausing to think it all through quickly. "I-I want to..."

They exchanged a glance. "You want to what babe?" Hyuuga asked.

My face heated up, I was no doubt blushing. "...I want to feel you inside me again...but I'm still kinda sore so--" I shook my head, glancing at Kiyoshi. "I-I'm sorry."

He chuckled, pressing a kiss to my cheek. "Don't worry Shun, I just want you to be okay."

Hyuuga cleared his throat, he was far from pale-faced himself. "Uh...so...are you sure?"

I nodded, meeting his gaze.  "Yeah, yeah I'm sure...just go slowly..."

He smiled, kissing me as Kiyoshi moved from beside me, I didn't pay much attention as I felt Hyuuga's fingers trailing up my sides. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him down, my chest rubbing against his shirt. He took the hint and broke away long enough to take it off, I ran a hand over his toned muscles, envious of how his body had kept its shape whereas mine certainly hadn't.

"So perfect..." I breathed, he froze momentarily before shaking his head.

"Nah...far from it." He murmured as Kiyoshi returned, dropping a small bottle and a foil packet beside me on the bed. I eyed them with a slight pang of nervousness but reminded myself that our first time had been without them and I had still survived.

"It's okay." Kiyoshi hummed, taking off his shirt as Hyuuga nuzzled my neck again, lightly biting at the mark left there. "If anything they'll--"

"I know." I cut him off, he smiled as he settled himself beside me on the bed, propping himself up with one arm as he watched us.

Light kisses down my torso made me sigh in content, Hyuuga made sure to barely touch my chest although he definitely admired it for a few seconds whilst I was distracted by Kiyoshi's wandering hand on my thigh. He eased me out of my shorts and underwear, as Hyuuga continued to kiss my body. I let the small pants and sighs leave my lips, watching as they both smiled at the noises they could get out of me. A hand teasingly wrapping around my cock bought a breathier moan from my throat, Kiyoshi hummed in response as Hyuuga moved away to get out of his pants.

"Feel good?" He asked, watching my reaction intently as I got more turned on by the attention. I nodded, biting my lip slightly as I ran a hand through his hair. Hyuuga was back leaning over me, kissing my jaw and hand reaching between my legs to tease my entrance, his fingers slick with the cool lube.

"Slowly yeah?" He murmured, gently pressing his finger against me.

"Yeah." I replied between small moans. He kissed me as he eased his finger into me, the burn made me hiss, the soreness making it feel more uncomfortable. He must've sensed something was off as he stopped, nuzzling my neck as I panted.

"Is it too much?"

"No...it's just been a while."

Kiyoshi continued slowly jerking me off, offering relief to me as Hyuuga started to move his finger in and out of me slowly. My body started to relax again as I became distracted by soft neck kisses and gentle fingers trailing over my inner thighs. A second finger was added, I let out a louder moan, tugging on Kiyoshi's hair as Hyuuga curled his fingers inside me, he didn't seem in a rush at all which I was thankful for given how long it really had been.

"I can feel how tight you are." He whispered, nipping at my ear lobe.

"Nng.." Was all I could say, pushing down on his fingers. "Please..."

"Oh? Y-You sure?" He seemed hesitant but added a third finger nonetheless.

My free hand was fisting the sheets as I gazed at Kiyoshi with glazed eyes, the heat was beginning to coil in my body as Kiyoshi's thumb swiped over the glistening head of my cock, I was making small whines and arching my back at every touch. They kept exchanging silent glances, Hyuuga's three fingers thrusting in and out with ease, curling and flexing inside and drawing a higher pitched moan from me.

"Yes..." Hyuuga breathed. "You sound so perfect like this..."

"Please Junpei...please..." I murmured. "I want you."

He tried to appear cool and collected but I could see the blush on his face. Kiyoshi hummed as he pulled his hand away, I let out a whimper at the loss of contact but he shook his head and kissed me. It was sloppier and needier than our last few kisses but that was of little concern to me. I felt Hyuuga's fingers pull out of me, feeling empty as the foil packet was opened.

A hand pulling my face away from Kiyoshi's spurred me to pant loudly. I smiled weakly as my gaze met Hyuuga's, his clean hand stroked my cheek fondly as he moved between my legs, pressing his tip against me. I ran my tongue over my bottom lip as I took in the sight of him; the toned muscles, broad shoulders, the thin trail of hair leading from his stomach down to where his cock was pressing against me.

"...yeah?" He asked, finding my free hand and linking our fingers together.

"Yeah." I replied, biting down on my lip as he slowly pressed into me, it was like I had feared; tight and almost painful. Kiyoshi kissed my shoulder, not interfering beyond getting me to release his hair and squeeze his hand instead.

"Too fast?" Hyuuga murmured, trying to keep his concern out of his voice. I shook my head and wrapped my legs around his waist, pulling him deeper quickly. I gasped, somewhat regretting my own action but he had almost fully bottomed out in one movement.

"Oh _god_..." I breathed, trying to will myself to relax.

"That was all you..." He chuckled, pulling out slightly but I kept my legs wrapped around him so he didn't move too much.

"I-I know..." I smiled, squeezing his hand. "I just wanted to...get on with it."

Kiyoshi chuckled beside us, kissing the back of my hand. Hyuuga sighed slightly as he kissed my cheek, keeping himself still until I exhaled. He slowly kissed my lips, parting them and breathing into my mouth as he pressed a little deeper, I let my eyes slip shut as he pulled out slowly. His pace was cautious, with each thrust he exhaled, a small murmur leaving his lips. I whimpered slightly, squeezing his hand as I broke away from the kiss, daring to open my eyes and see his flushed face and lidded eyes.

"...keep going." I murmured. "Faster."

He didn't say anything, merely nodding and doing exactly that, I let go of his hand and bought it around the back of his neck, pulling him down again for a sloppy kiss. So focused on how his lips felt against mine, I didn't think about my neglected cock until a firm hand wrapped around it again, I moaned loudly as Kiyoshi teased me, the combination of feeling Hyuuga inside me and Kiyoshi's hand on me was distracting me from the discomfort. When his pace started to increase, my moans and whimpers got louder, I dug my nails into the back of Hyuuga's neck.

"Fuck yes..." Hyuuga panted against my lips, pressing deeper inside me. " _Fuck_...I love you so much."

"Please." I sighed, rolling my hips slightly.

Kiyoshi's hand on my cock got faster, I could feel his gaze on me as I arched my back and tried to get more friction. It was hard to tell where the pleasure was coming from anymore, I could sense I was getting closer but the slow pace was keeping my orgasm just out of reach.

"Junpei...." I whined. "F-Faster."

"What happened to slowly?" Kiyoshi purred in my ear, fingers flexing around my cock. "Hmm?"

I whimpered, my mind blurring as his hand got slightly rougher and Hyuuga finally started to let go a little, still pressing deep as he cursed under his breath. My heart was racing, nerves singing as he changed his angle and nailed the bundle of nerves that had me screaming. Kiyoshi tightened his grip and quickly tipped me over the edge. Hyuuga fell out of rhythm as I came, he slowed and leaned over me, kissing me deeply as I moaned through my post-orgasm haze.

The next thing I was aware of was him slipping out of me, I winced slightly as my body reacted to the loss. Kiyoshi was quick to pull me into his hold, despite being covered in my own come, kissing my neck and murmuring in my ear. Hyuuga went into the bathroom and returned with a wash-cloth, wiping me down carefully. I curled into Kiyoshi's hold once I was cleaned up and redressed, the exhaustion finally catching up with me.

"I love you too Junpei..." I murmured over my shoulder as he settled behind me.

He huffed against my neck, rubbing my arm. Kiyoshi kissed my forehead and pulled a blanket over us. I nuzzled his neck as I sighed, a few hours of sleep would be more than good for me, for all of us.

 


	25. The chain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a tiring week and this chapter got gradually pieced together, the next few chapters will take place over the course of a few months so there's going to be some landmark occasions marked in their lives, nothing overly dramatic...I think.
> 
> I'm intending to finish this fic at chapter 30 and immediately begin my next project.
> 
> (I'll eventually get back to the requests...I haven't forgotten them, I just got very busy.)

 

"Don't eat that Koichi." I sighed, taking the seashell from his hand before he could try to eat it.

He made a small noise of irritation before trying to take it from me. It was strange to think that half a year had already passed and now we were sat on a beach with our friends who were more like family at this stage. Kiyoshi distracted Koichi with one of his teething toys so I could toss the seashell in Koganei's general direction.

"He's growing up fast isn't he?" Hyuuga hummed in my ear as we watched our son reaching for the small brightly coloured ring that he could bite on.

"Tell me about it." I smiled. "But it's nice to watch him become more independent."

Koichi leaned a bit too far forward and lost his balance, sprawling out on the blanket with a slightly startled look before Kiyoshi poked his nose teasingly. For a moment I thought he was going to start bawling like he had done the past few times he fell, he didn't exactly handle failure very well, he glanced at Kiyoshi and then to me as if seeking confirmation.

"It's okay!" I told him with a smile. "You'll get it eventually little one."

Kiyoshi chuckled, picking Koichi up and holding him against his chest, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "You're gonna cause so much trouble when you start walking aren't you?" He murmured.

"You can be responsible for that." Hyuuga sighed, laying back on the blanket.

"Nah, we'll give him to Koganei." I replied. "Pretty sure it falls under godfather responsibilities."

I was distracted by Kagami calling from the water's edge, figuring that Koichi was more than happy with running his fingers over Kiyoshi's light stubble, I got up and went to find out what the ace wanted from me. The sun was strong but it felt good to be out in the summer weather, the past few months of rain and cold had definitely effected my mood, even with the little ball of sunshine that was Koichi, so it was a welcome change to be out in the fresh sea air and warm sunlight.

"You hadn't moved in a while so I figured you'd be up for a swim." Kagami smiled, Kuroko was already knee-deep in the ocean.

"Nice, do you have a ball or something?" I asked, stepping into the cool water. Kagami called back to some of the others as I joined Kuroko.

"Heads up!" Koganei called seconds before a beach ball flew over my head and landed on the water. He followed it a few moments later, diving head-first into the deeper water and sending large waves rippling out. Mitobe and Furihata joined us as Kagami fished the ball into his hands and tossed it to Kuroko.

We got to practice our volleyball skills in the water, if anything it just proved that some of us - mainly Kagami - shouldn't try to change sports any time soon. Koganei spent more time falling into the water than hitting the ball, Kuroko's mission was to hit Kagami in the face as whilst trying not to burst the ball, Furihata would laugh at our ace's expression and the small red marks from the ball and Mitobe would keep pulling Koganei out from the water.

"Itzuki~ I challenge you to a swimming race!" Koganei declared.

"Is that really a good idea Koga?" I raised an eyebrow. "I'm faster than you on court."

"That means nothing." He beamed. "Rin-chan can you go and stand down the beach to see who wins?"

Mitobe nodded and dragged Furihata with him for good measure, I chuckled as I tugged on the shirt I was wearing over the two piece swimsuit I was wearing. Kagami was swimming after the ball which had drifted away from us so Kuroko was left to start this race. I hadn't actually swam since the last summer so it was kinda hit or miss whether I'd beat Koganei.

"Ready?" Kuroko asked.

"Yep." We both replied.

He gave us a countdown, I wasn't even sure how far we were swimming, I guessed either Mitobe or Furihata would be stood in the water. Either way, it was short race but that didn't stop me being breathless, Koganei grinned at me as he helped me stand up. I sighed heavily at how my shirt stuck to me, tugging it off and wringing it out as the others tried not to stare.

"Yes I still have boobs guys. Would've thought that was obvious." I remarked with a smile.

"I mean you can pass for a girl anyway--" Koganei started before Mitobe covered his mouth with a hand, no doubt to stop him digging himself into a hole.

I laughed and shook my head, deciding to go back and check on my family. Momoi and Riko had arrived and were cooing over Koichi, Hyuuga appeared to have fallen asleep and Kiyoshi was flicking through the latest issue of basketball monthly. I mindlessly tossed my damp shirt onto the sand next to Kiyoshi and sat down next to Riko, Koichi turned his head and looked at me with a open-mouthed smile.

"I hope you don't mind, we gave him a popsicle." Momoi told me, which explained the bright blue residue covering my son's cheeks.

"Except now someone's all sticky." I remarked, picking him up and kissing his forehead. "Sticky boy."

He gurgled happily and rubbed his face against mine, I sighed but smiled as I held him. The two girls giggled at Koichi's cheekiness, drawing correlations between his behaviour and mine. I pointed out that he may take his looks from Kiyoshi and Hyuuga but he was still _my_ son.

"But he does have Hyuuga's temper." I added.

"That doesn't surprise me." Riko mused. "As long as we don't have to put up with more puns."

I raised an eyebrow. "Now there's an idea..."

Momoi kept cooing at Koichi, I passed him to her and fished around in a bag for some wipes to get rid of the stickiness. I caught Kiyoshi's eye, or rather I caught him staring at my chest, I tossed the used wipe at his face and snapped him out of his trance.

"Anything interesting in this month's issue?" I asked, lying back and propping myself up on my elbows.

"Well other than the inter-high washout...not really. Although they seem to have picked up on your presence again, there's a small article on Furi's point guard skills and weighing up how long it'll be before you return permanently."

I nodded. "Have they latched on to Koichi yet?"

We had tried to keep our son away from the limelight, obviously my pregnancy had come up a few times, specifically when everyone realised I wasn't playing after the Winter Cup and Hyuuga had to make an official statement to the press...what a shitstorm that caused. So we hadn't actually taken Koichi to any games that didn't take place at our school, I didn't want him to be dubbed as 'an omega's mistake' - which was what one of the smaller magazines had first introduced the story as until Kise got involved and threatened to drag their name through the dirt if they kept running with it.

"As far as I can tell...no. Well obviously everytime your name comes up they put in brackets 'the third year point guard who's taking time out to care for his son'. It could be worse."

"I expect they'll want an interview when they see me next..."

He put the magazine down and shuffled closer to me, lightly caressing my cheek as he leaned down and kissed me gently. "It'll be okay."

"I hope so. It's hard enough starting the third year of high school with a baby around, the last thing I need is being stalked by irritating lowlifes who just want to exploit me for money."

He chuckled. "You sound like Kise."

"I never gave him much credit before now." I sighed, letting my head fall back. "Ah well."

He smiled, running a hand over my stomach where the stretch marks and baby weight remained, I didn't think much of it, it wasn't the weirdest part of my body anymore. He got me to roll onto my stomach, I didn't complain when I felt him untie the top half of my swimsuit and begin rubbing circles into my back. I listened to Koichi's excited noises as he was entertained by our friends, they really made this whole parenting thing a little easier on me and I was forever thankful for them.

"Feel free to fall asleep." Kiyoshi hummed.

"Oh I will." I sighed, the perks of having the entire team here - even the new freshmen - was that there was an endless supply of babysitters.

He chuckled, pressing a little harder between my shoulder blades and causing me to whimper slightly. The sound of the ocean was calming, the odd outburst from Kagami and Koganei's laughter could be heard from wherever they were on the beach, I let my eyes close and my body relax, today was a good day.

 

\---

 

Koichi slept through the train ride home, completely exhausted. He had been taken to the water's edge by Kuroko and Furihata and had his first experience with the ocean, he then tried to eat seaweed and nearly succeeded before Mitobe intervened, his fascination with seashells hadn't disappeared as Kagami and Hyuuga collected an entire bucket full for him. I wanted to put him straight to bed but as it was only five in the afternoon he'd wake up at two in the morning if he was allowed to sleep and there was no way I was letting that happen.

"Hey...wakey wakey Koichi." I murmured as we got into the apartment, we were due to move out before the end of the summer. Kiyoshi's grandparents had paid the deposit on one in the same complex as Kagami's - which I was completely against at first because I felt like people were throwing money at us - so we'd be finally alone but still within reach of our friends.

His nose scrunched up slightly as I nuzzled his neck. "Koichi~"

He awoke with a small startled cry, I cuddled him to assure him everything was fine as Hyuuga made him up a bottle of formula. Kuroko and Nigou joined me on the couch as I debated giving Koichi a bath, receiving the warmed bottle from Hyuuga and proceeding to feed our son.

"Treasure the moments when we can shut him up with food." Hyuuga mused, sitting on my other side and wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "When he gets older it'll be impossible to satisfy him with food alone."

"It works with Taiga." Kuroko remarked, I snorted as Hyuuga laughed.

"We don't wanna know how you keep him quiet." I replied, gently shifting Koichi so I could rub his back and try to get him to burp. "You guys keep to your sex life and we'll keep to ours."

Nigou yipped almost as if he agreed, he clambered into my lap and pawed at Koichi. I rolled my eyes slightly as my son quickly started smiling and reaching out for the puppy, Nigou was excitable and sometimes I was a little weary of him but I chalked it up to my over-protectiveness. Kuroko smiled as Nigou licked Koichi's cheek and sniffed his neck, the two of them were quickly becoming inseparable, in a way it was a good thing but it made me somewhat want to get our own dog when we moved out.

"Can we get a puppy?" I asked Hyuuga, he looked confused for a second before picking up on what I was asking.

"Uh...sure? If the landlords let us."

Koichi giggled as Nigou rolled onto his back on the couch and then promptly slipped off onto the floor. Kuroko picked him up and ruffled his fur, Koichi already making grabby hands for the little husky.

"You like the puppy don't you?" I asked him, hoping in vain that he'd reply, it was too early for him to properly talk so we'd settle for hearing him gurgle and giggle for a while longer. "Do you want a puppy like Kuroko's?"

"So you're practically living here now right?" Hyuuga asked the shadow as Koichi buried his face in my chest.

"In essence...I may move in permanently before next semester." He replied with a small smile. "Taiga might get lonely once you leave."

"We can't have that can we?"

"He's rather sentimental, he means it when he says you guys make it feel more like a home here. Then again, he is quite far away from his parents so I suppose it's natural."

A few moments of silence passed before I addressed the question that had actually been eating at me for a while. "So...once he's graduated, is his going back to the states?"

Kuroko shrugged, fixing his gaze on Nigou who had since calmed down and was looking at his owner in curiosity. "I haven't asked him. I think he avoids the subject more nowadays on the account we're together, so if he goes then I logically must go with him..."

"I guess once we're out of your way you'll discuss it more?" Hyuuga asked. "I mean, you'll both be looking at colleges towards the end of this year so the topic will come up eventually."

"He's my alpha, whatever says goes."

I tensed. It was strange hearing such dismissive comments from _Kuroko_ of all people, he was almost as gutsy as I was when it came to the alpha/omega divide.

"You know that's not true. And he wouldn't do that to you either, it's clear as day he loves you and wants a life with you so he'd want you to be happy." I replied. "Taiga will respect your wishes, and if you want to stay here then I have a feeling he'll be more than happy to stay."

The conversation I had with Kagami came back into my mind, how he was seriously considering asking Kuroko to have a baby with him, how he seemed willing to spend the rest of his life with his shadow, his boyfriend, his omega. There hadn't been a single mention of him intending to return to the states, if anything his new found friendships in the miracles had sent the opposite message. But of course, I couldn't tell Kuroko this, that conversation was sealed.

"I appreciate the pep talk senpai."

"You should totally call him 'mom' like Furihata does in texts." Hyuuga added.

"Stop being an ass about it." I lightly nudged him in the ribs. "Furihata's taking this pack mother thing to heart and you shouldn't make fun of him for it."

"I suppose it gives you something to tip you off when Akashi's texting you form Furi's phone..."

Koichi was getting restless, Nigou had curled up in Kuroko's lap so our son was demanding attention. I took his hands and kissed each one, gaining a smile from him that could melt butter, before deciding that I could give him a bath and then get him to go to sleep before eight, leaving us with a few precious hours to rest. I found Kiyoshi changing the bed sheets and asked if he wanted to participate in bath-time, he took one look at Koichi's bright smile and nodded, telling me he'd finish up and join us soon.

I found that Koichi could be sat on the floor of the bathroom and be trusted to not cause much chaos, apart from the time he crawled into the cupboard under the sink and found the toilet roll supply but we had since relocated it elsewhere and now used the cupboard for towel storage. As the water ran, I made sure that the water wasn't too hot before starting too gently coax him out of his sand-covered clothes. HE was very attentive as I narrated the process, telling him what each piece of clothing was, he giggled when I poked his nose and swept him up in my arms.

"Is someone ready to have his bath then?" Kiyoshi asked as he stepped into the bathroom.

"Yes he is." I replied, stepping aside so Kiyoshi could tend to the water, double checking the temperature before concluding it was okay.

He wasn't too bad with baths, he loved splashing about and trying to eat the small plastic duck that my mother had given him, he didn't care for me actually trying to clean him so I tended to drag one of the others into the process so they could distract him whilst I took care of the literal dirty work.

"There we go, all clean!" Kiyoshi declared as I washed away the last of the lotion. I smiled as he bundled Koichi up in a towel and kissed his forehead. "So, now what, do we go and find daddy or do we wanna cuddle in the big bed?"

I chuckled as I shook my head, letting the water drain and moving to tidy up as Kiyoshi carried Koichi into the bedroom to get him ready for bed. The faint smell of hot food caught my nose, I slipped into the kitchen and wrapped my arms around Hyuuga's waist, planting a kiss on the back of his neck.

"Koichi asleep?" He hummed, stirring the ramen in the pot.

"Not yet, Teppei's sorting him out but I think we're gonna have him awake for another hour so he'll hopefully sleep through the night again."

He nodded, placing the lid of the pot on before turning around and kissing me. I smiled and broke away, burying my face in his shirt as he ran a hand through my hair. We could hear Koichi giggling so I gathered that Kiyoshi was doing something silly to entertain him, I was about to ask about food when Kagami joined us in the kitchen and asked the question anyway.

"I'm making ramen, doubt there'll be enough for all of us but you're welcome to add some more before I turn the stove off." Hyuuga told him, keeping an arm around me as he took the lid off and stirred the pot again, the steam and the aroma of chicken wafting out.

"Sounds good, Tetsuya and I are watching a movie in my room so I'll make some up in a minute." The ace told us. "I guess Koichi's going to sleep soon yeah?"

"An hour...but I'd appreciate you not making a racket now. We're gonna be getting him to relax so he'll sleep until a sensible hour of the day." I replied.

"Cool, we'll keep it down then." He smiled. "Oh, I'm going grocery shopping tomorrow so if you need anything--"

"Popsicles." I stated. "...for Koichi's teething."

"And totally not for you teasing your boyfriends?" Hyuuga asked, getting another nudge to the ribs.

"Any particular flavour?"

I shrugged. "Whatever's good for you, I don't think he has a preference yet."

Hyuuga served the ramen into three bowls, before stepping out of Kagami's way and heading to the bedroom. Kiyoshi was led on our bed with Koichi sitting upright next to him mouthing at one of the seashells he had collected that day.

"Don't worry, I washed it." He told me when I stared at my son. Hyuuga chuckled and passed a bowl to our lover, I gingerly sat cross-legged on the bed and smiled as Koichi instantly became more interested in my food than the shell. I poked his nose and quickly set about eating my meal as quickly as possible before he tried to take it from me.

Hyuuga decided to take one for the team, setting his bowl aside to cool slightly as he gently took our son in his arms and lay down, Koichi let out a startled noise as he found himself being tickled, not entirely sure what to make of the situation. He quickly understood that he wasn't in danger as Hyuuga kissed his cheek, I exchanged a glance with Kiyoshi as I finished off my ramen and set the bowl on the table. Koichi was trying to grab Hyuuga's glasses but couldn't quite work out how to take them off his face, only succeeding in making them go askew. Kiyoshi leaned forward and helped him out, Hyuuga merely snorted in amusement as our son regarded the glasses in his hands with curiosity.

I gently coaxed him to raise them to his own eyes, giggling at how comical he looked. "Does daddy look better through them?" I teased, Hyuuga didn't seem too put out at the turn of events, even laughing at Koichi's puzzlement as he started turning them over in his hands, marking the glass with fingerprints.

"Might wanna get a few spare pairs Junpei." Kiyoshi remarked, lifting the bowl to his lips to drain the rest of the soup. "Koichi will probably break them at some point."

"Yeah...although I reckon I don't have to wear them all the time once high school finishes, not like we'll be playing basketball much."

"You're not thinking about quitting again? What about Koga and Mitobe? They'll wanna play...and whoever takes up the captaincy at Seirin will probably need some tutoring." I quickly replied, gathering Koichi in my arms and passing Hyuuga his glasses back. "I thought you loved basketball."

"I do." He replied. "But I'll probably have to take on more work so that'll leave less time to be with you, and if it comes to a choice between the sport and my family...it's no contest."

I looked down at Koichi as he nuzzled my chest, making small noises as I rubbed his back. "...and if Koichi wants to play?"

Hyuuga smiled, picking up his bowl of slightly-cold ramen and picking at it. "I guess I could be persuaded..."

Kiyoshi rolled his eyes. "Somehow I doubt you'll be so humble when he comes running up to you asking you to teach him how to shoot."

"He'll probably ramble about clutch time for a while." I added.

"And then it'll be an in-depth analysis of each type of shot."

"And god forbid Koichi ever tries to dunk."

Hyuuga laughed into his food. "Okay okay...I get it. I won't completely quit...but tutoring the new captain? I dunno."

That was good enough for me, I leaned back as I gently rubbed Koichi's back some more. He was quickly settling down as I hummed absent-mindedly, the quickest way to get him to sleep was to just continuously rub his back and not move him, occasionally singing to him helped the process along but more often than not it would just keep him awake.

"Is he down yet?" Kiyoshi murmured, gently nuzzling my neck as he gazed at Koichi.

"Getting there..." I whispered. "I think he likes this routine we have, the whole chilling in bed thing..."

"I think it does us a whole load of good too." He hummed. "Gives us a chance to relax."

I nodded, determining that Koichi was asleep enough to be moved to his crib, he didn't stir as I lay him down and draped his blanket over him, I noticed that there was something missing though.

"Oi where's the eagle?" I asked in a hushed tone. "He'll have a tantrum if it isn't here when he wakes up."

Hyuuga chuckled slightly and disappeared into the lounge for a few moments. The stuffed eagle had been bought by Takao as a joke, a play on my on-court skill, but Koichi had taken a liking to the small bird so now I was stuck with it. I didn't mind though, there were many other stuffed animals lining the crib however it was almost guaranteed that Koichi would have a meltdown in the morning if his precious eagle wasn't with him. I always made a mental note to get Takao back for this one.

"Heads up." Hyuuga called from the doorway, I caught the plush bird and placed it carefully next to my son, dwelling at the side of the crib for a few moments until I was sure he wasn't going to wake up.

Now that he was asleep, I actually felt my own exhaustion affecting me. Kiyoshi smiled as I stretched and yawned, he didn't give me any time to object before he was tugging me onto the bed and into his arms. At first I wasn't too amused but gave in anyway, his scent was always a comforting one and I found it easy to relax in his hold. He didn't seem to concerned about how I was still very much dressed, he ruffled my hair and kissed my neck, humming in content as I slumped against him.

"Teppei...I need to get undressed..." I breathed, not making an effort to move.

"Shhh...you need to sleep." He replied, I heard the door shut quietly and felt the bed dip slightly. "It's been a long day."

I wasn't about to disagree, I half-heartedly shrugged and let him set me on the bed next to Hyuuga. Within a few moments I was drifting asleep, I had a feeling I'd wake up stiff from my clothing but I was far too tired to care.

 

\---

 

I actually woke up nearly naked. The daylight flooded the room and I was alone in bed, the surrounding sheets were warm though so I hadn't been alone long. Koichi wasn't in his crib so I gathered that one or both of my boyfriends were looking after him, I slowly sat up and ran a hand through my hair as I tried to figure how what time it was. There were voices in the other room, ones I didn't recognise immediately as the miracles or any of our team-mates. With a shrug, I decided that grabbing a quick shower wouldn't be a bad idea.

When I did eventually walk into the lounge, having gotten dressed and now looking vaguely presentable, I found nearly the entire Rakuzan team sprawled out on the couches. I supposed that there were worse people to find in your home.

"Oh morning love." Kiyoshi greeted me with a smile, Koichi was on his lap and he instantly turned his head and stretched out his hands for me. I smiled and gathered my son in my arms before actually looking at our guests, the only member of Rakuzan that wasn't present was Akashi but I gathered that he had been involved in this somehow.

"So...what's going on?" I asked Kiyoshi.

"Oh, you remember how these three were my team-mates right?" He gestured to Reo, Hayama and Nebuya. I nodded as Koichi decided to try and eat my necklace again. "They were in the area apparently so they dropped by."

"And Mayu?" I asked, noting the former shadow of the team who was now a college student, he didn't seem like he wanted to be here at all.

Reo cleared his throat. "Chi-chan has something he wants to say to you." He nudged the older male who scowled in response but stood up and locked eyes with me.

"I...uh." He sighed heavily, glaring at Reo for a split second before returning his gaze to mine. "I'm sorry for what I said to you during our match."

For a moment I was confused, I didn't remember what he had said - truthfully most of that match was a blur - but a few seconds of silence passed before it came back to me; _'We have a bit more self-control than that you pathetic mutt'_.

"Ah, oh uh okay." I replied, unsure how to respond really. "No harm done, I had actually forgotten about it..."

"See Reo?" Mayuzumi sighed. "Told you."

"I don't care Chi-chan, you were out of line and you needed to apologise."

Kiyoshi chuckled as Mayuzumi rolled his eyes and sat back down, busying himself with his phone instead. "I remember you used to scold Hanamiya like that."

Hayama and Nebuya exchanged glances as Reo started complaining about their other ex-team-mate. Koichi didn't seem fazed by the conversation, or how Hanamiya was responsible for a lot of drama in our lives. I listened to the Uncrowned Kings reminisce as I tried to stop him tugging on my chain, Hayama appeared at me side and started distracting him, he asked me a load of questions about what having a baby was like, whether we were gonna encourage him to play basketball or not and which one of us he took after the most.

"Koichi, can you not?" I sighed, taking my necklace from his fingers again. Kiyoshi laughed as Koichi just beamed at me and made to grab it again.

"Do you remember when you used to wear a chain like that in junior high Te-chan?" Reo asked.

"...kind of." Kiyoshi replied, he seemed reluctant to discuss it and it looked like I wasn't the only one who picked up on it.

"What happened to it?" Nebuya asked. "You always went on about how it was your grandfather's and how you were proud to wear it."

Kiyoshi shrugged. "I dunno."

"I call bullshi--" Hayama started before he got a death glare from Reo. "--I mean I don't believe you."

After a few moments of silence, Kiyoshi sighed. "Ma...Hanamiya kept making remarks about it, I don't remember really but it around the time that we were seeing each other. I just remember not having it one day that's all."

The other uncrowned kings exchanged a glance. I was trying to read between the lines to no avail as Reo smiled slightly.

"Well what if we told you that we...uh cleared out Hanamiya's locker on our last day of junior high and found a lot of stuff that he just left there?" Hayama started, Kiyoshi gave him a puzzled look.

"We threw most of it in the trash but we found this amongst some old photos of you two." Nebuya reached into the pocket of his jacket and bought out a small box, Kiyoshi took it and slid the lid off to reveal a gold chain, thicker than the one around my neck but nothing too heavy. I watched as he stared at it in disbelief.

"We reckon you either gave it to him or he took it from you and just never gave it back. We held onto it because we didn't know where it came from, we just hadn't had the chance to talk to you about it." Reo finished.

"And he never said anything about it?" I asked, Kiyoshi was still in shock. "Nothing at all?"

Reo shook his head. "We haven't spoken to him since the last practice...he's never played Rakuzan and we've never crossed paths."

Koichi made a small noise of irritation at not being the focus of attention, I wanted to make sure Kiyoshi was okay but I couldn't do that with a baby on my hip. I passed my son to Reo, who seemed the most able out of the four of them to deal with a baby, before sitting next to Kiyoshi and lightly running my hand along his forearm. He took the chain out of the box and cradled it in his hand, running his thumb over the gold links as his eyes teared up.

"We got it cleaned and polished." Hayama added. "And then it just sat in Reo-nee's dorm room all this time."

Kiyoshi looked up at his former team-mates. "Thank you...I-I...I honestly don't know what else to say."

Reo smiled as Nebuya tickled Koichi's neck. "Don't worry about it Te-chan, it's the least we could do. Plus we figured that you'd want to pass it onto this cutie when he's a little older." He nodded to Koichi who was now watching Nebuya ruffling Hayama's hair.

I smiled, taking Kiyoshi's hand in mine and giving it a reassuring squeeze. He smiled back at me and offered the chain to me, I took it and quickly figured that it was a little too long for Koichi currently but he could probably wear it by his birthday or when supervised by one of us. For the sake of the moment, I stood up and carefully put it around his neck, taking him back from Reo and sitting next to Kiyoshi again.

"That was grandpapa's you know Koichi, and then it was mine for a while." Kiyoshi told our son with a smile. "But you can have it now."

Koichi grasped it easily, looking at me and then to Kiyoshi as he put it in his mouth. I snorted and ruffled his hair, one day he might understand how important this simple chain is, and maybe that'll be the same day he stops trying to eat it.


	26. The dark side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...first of all, I promise that I won't do any more angsty chapters after this.
> 
> Second, we're just gonna have fluffy chapters from now on!
> 
> Third, I'm surprised no-one's called me out on how the UKs didn't actually attend the same middle school/junior high. Maybe we all just like the head canon that they all did.
> 
> Finally, I'm gonna go an hide in a box now because I know some of you will probably want to kill me for this chapter~

"And you'll be careful right?" Kiyoshi asked me. I rolled my eyes slightly as I finished tying the laces on my sneakers.

"Yeah, I'll have Koga with me." I replied with a smile, straightening up and reaching for the door handle. "I have to start sooner or later if I'm gonna be the point guard regularly for our last year."

He nodded, sighing a little as he glanced over his shoulder into the lounge area where Kuroko and Nigou were entertaining Koichi. "Okay, well call if anything happens." He mused, ruffling my hair and leaning forward to kiss my cheek. "I love you."

"I love you too Teppei." I retorted, heading out before Koichi could have a minor tantrum, he was getting better at being left with other people so I was starting to pick up my basketball training again. For now it was just going for runs with Koganei and occasionally playing street-ball with Furihata and the other underclassmen, but once the next semester started and I went back to class full time I was going to properly return to Seirin. To do that though, meant I had to step up my game again and effectively steal the point guard position back from Furihata.

"Sup Itzuki~" Koganei greeted me at the entrance to the apartment complex, we rarely wore our kit out on these runs, sticking to more casual clothing but that didn't stop us from getting recognised occasionally.

"Koichi's in a good mood so hopefully he won't be a handful for them." I replied.

"I meant what's up with _you_." He laughed as we started our easy pace. "Come on Shun, you can be honest with me."

There was more than one reason that I went running with Koganei, sure I could easily go with Kiyoshi or Hyuuga but it felt good to have someone else to vent to if needed. He was an easy-going guy and always gave me an honest and upfront opinion on anything worrying me, sometimes with comedy to sweeten the harsh truth, sometimes not.

"I know Shinji...I guess the only thing bothering me is how Furi's been the first choice point guard since January but now I'm going to try and take it back from him. After all those practices and matches that I spent building him up, I'm gonna have to tear it all away from him..."

He hummed in thought, the streets were reasonably quiet today as it was Sunday, even so we tended to take back alleys and more scenic pathways so we weren't always running next to the roads. For a moment I thought he had nothing to say on the matter until we were waiting for a traffic light to change.

"Well he's not had any competition for the position, we've had no option but to pick him. I think it'll help him first understand that he has to work for it now more than ever, and second that he's got to prove that he's gotten better since you last played." He replied, hands on his hips as he stretched slightly. "I've had the same thing with the captain, whilst he took those few days out I had to step up as shooting guard but when he came back I had to fight to keep my claim...obviously I lost in the end but I'm not too bummed out."

I smiled as we set off again. The few times I had attended practice since having Koichi, I noticed that Koganei was taking the mentoring approach to the new freshmen, whenever they'd get disheartened at a missed basket or Hyuuga was a bit rough-handed with them, he was always there cheering them on, passing them towels, giving them pointers and generally keeping the mood light. He wanted to make sure they had a good time, he didn't want them to hate their time at Seirin.

"Do you think you'll stick around after graduation? I reckon you'd make a good coach." I suggested after we had jogged for a while in silence.

"Eh? Me?" He stumbled slightly which bought us both to a stop. We were on the outskirts of the district where some woodland separated us from the next one, the trees whistled in the gentle breeze as the humidity weighed down on our shoulders. "I-I don't think so."

"Why not?" I placed a hand on his shoulder. "You're good at analysing the state of play, you're great at firing us up when we need a morale boost, you're good at calming us down. I think you'd be great."

He shook his head slightly as he chuckled. "Rin-chan's said the same...he thinks I'm a natural."

"I'm sure Junpei and Teppei would agree with me."

He lightly punched my shoulder, a beaming smile on his face. "Hey, aren't we meant to be running?"

I returned the gesture. "Race you to Maji burger."

He nodded, I pushed myself a little more than usual, it wasn't a high stakes race but it had been a while since I'd had any kind of competition. We both arrived at the fast food chain out of breath but smiling, he declared that it was a tie but he'd buy us both some food. I assured him that I wasn't that hungry but he wouldn't hear of it.

"Friends don't let friends starve after they've had a baby~"

"Koga please don't talk too loud--"

"Everyone already knows. Anyone who's read basketball monthly _knows_."

I sighed as I slumped into the booth, he hurried off to get us our food as I stared out the window. When I sensed that someone sat across from me I expected Koganei's beaming smile.

Instead I found a very _different_ smile.

"The fuck do you want?" I uttered, watching my reflection in the glasses that the other wore.

"Nice to see you're as difficult as ever." Imayoshi grinned.

"You didn't answer me."

He shrugged, his scent rolling off of him made me want to vomit. "Just passing through and I saw you and cat-boy--"

"Cat-boy?!" Koganei's ticked off tone as he set the tray down on the table gave me chills. "I suppose it's better than demon-captain."

Imayoshi chuckled. "Well I've handed the captaincy to Wakamatsu...he can work out how to deal with Aomine now."

As revolting as he was on court - and off it - I was tempted to try and start fresh with him. Koganei sat next to me and gave me a portion of fries as Imayoshi regarded me with a curious gaze.

"I gather you've had your baby." His smile not wavering. "I'd guess you're trying to get back into shape to challenge that Chihuahua for your old position."

"I wouldn't call him that around Akashi." I hummed, trying to appear as calm and calculated as always.

"How is your son? I've heard various things..." He changed the subject back to Koichi, I was starting to feel unsettled about discussing this with him.

I snorted, sensing that Koganei was uneasy at the ex-captain sitting with us. "Why do you care?"

Imayoshi sighed, resting his head on one hand. "Drop the act Shun, remember who my omega is."

"That prick who nearly--"

"Makoto is a loose cannon yes, but he was on the same team as Kiyoshi...more than that actually." He seemed

The remark Reo had made when the Rakuzan team handed over Kiyoshi's chain flashed through my mind, apparently Reo had found it in amongst a collection of photos of Kiyoshi and Hanamiya from when they had been closer. I somewhat wanted to know what those pictures were like just to kill my curiosity.

"How much do you know about that?" I asked, taking the bait he offered as I ate a fry. "Him and Kiyoshi?"

He grinned. "Oh? Kiyoshi hasn't told you?"

"He told me it happened but no details...at the time I let it go--"

"Because you were pregnant, yeah yeah." He adjusted his glasses as he checked his phone. "I suppose I can indulge you a little before I have to go."

Koganei and I exchanged a glance as Imayoshi tapped out a text before humming in thought. "From what I've been told, and what I've deduced, the short story is that they were all pretty close until their final year, the year the miracles surpassed them. During this time of closeness, Makoto and Kiyoshi had a few close calls, their polar opposite personalities causing just the right of friction to prompt bickering similar to that of Aomine and Kise."

"And?"

"Well, tension bubbled over and one night Makoto pushed Kiyoshi's buttons enough to get him to let his guard down...from what I gather it was a one off thing but it left a mark on their relationship." He chuckled slightly. "No offence but Kiyoshi gets attached too easily."

I swallowed. "Well, that's only a problem to those who just want a quick fuck isn't it?" I uttered, keeping my gaze on him, taking everything he was saying with a pinch of salt. This was Imayoshi after all, he wasn't exactly the most reliable source.

"Touché." Imayoshi replied. "Anyway, so that's the short version. After their night of passion, they weren't quite the same towards each other..."

"Shoichi." I stated. He tilted his head at me using his first name, a smaller smile graced his face as he took off his glasses. "Get to the point."

"Shun." He replied. "You sure you want to hear this? I mean, I don't care if I destroy your relationship by telling you this but...despite rumours, I _do_ have some decency."

"What? You said you don't care but--" Koganei started.

"Stop fucking me around." I snapped. "You clearly came here for a reason so tell me what the fuck happened."

He grinned. "Okay then. So, Makoto told me about how victory was great and all but his team-mates began to irritate him, they always went on about how 'being the best is nothing if we don't keep practising' and it annoyed him."

"Sounds like him." I uttered.

"He started pulling stunts during matches as a way of venting his irritation. At first they were minor, the odd trip here, an elbow there...Reo and Hayama noticed and tried to get him to stop but obviously by this point it was just pouring fuel on the fire. So naturally Kiyoshi took a more heavy-handed approach and threatened to drop him from the team, Makoto being the...uh... _strategist_ he is managed to get Kiyoshi into a rather compromising position--"

"Don't fucking sugar-coat it you prick--" I cut in, trying not to imagine this entire scene playing out in the locker room like it had done with me. Koganei's hand on my shoulder eased me slightly. I relaxed my shoulders as Imayoshi regarded me with a stoic expression.

"Fine. He shoved Kiyoshi to the ground and straddled him. Using the element of surprise to gain the upper hand, he didn't tell me exactly what he did. All I know is that whatever he did, it caused a shift in their relationship."

"What _kind_ of shift?" I was getting more and more irritated at how he was dancing around the subject. I didn't particularly want to think about _what_ Hanamiya did to cause this shift but now I was too curious about this past relationship to drop it now.

"Makoto held it over Kiyoshi. Kiyoshi went along with it, somewhere between then and the end of that semester they had actually started 'dating' in the loosest sense of the word."

" _Dating_?" I repeated, the venom in my voice showed my disgust.

"I think Kiyoshi thought he was doing the team a favour by keeping Makoto under control, using sex as a--"

I spluttered. _Sex_? Sure I hadn't thought Kiyoshi was a virgin when my heat happened but with _Hanamiya_?!  Imayoshi grinned as my eyes widened.

"Yes you heard me. After every match, if Kiyoshi had deemed that Makoto had played dirty, he'd have his way in the locker room afterwards."

"I don't believe you." I clenched my hands into fists. "You're lying."

"Am I?" He tilted his head again, stealing one of my fries. Koganei had finished his food ages ago but was keeping firmly out of the conversation. "Think about it. He hasn't told you, why would that be? He doesn't want to admit that he misplaced his loyalty, that he lost his virginity to his team-mate in an error of judgement? That's probably what he'd say."

"Shut up."

"The so called 'gentle giant' was anything _but_ gentle with Makoto...and they both _loved_ it." He sounded out each syllable of the word 'loved' with a shit-eating grin. "I don't know the details of how your heat went down but I bet he was rough right?"

"I said _shut up_!" I nearly shouted, slamming my fists on the table and gaining the attention of the restaurant. Imayoshi chuckled as Koganei stood up and pointed to the door.

"You've outstayed your welcome." He uttered. "Please leave."

Imayoshi leaned across the table as he stood up. "You wanted to know Shun, remember that."

I stared at the table in front of me as Koganei sat back down and tugged on my arm. A lot of different thoughts were running through my head, I didn't realise how long had passed until Koganei tugged me to stand up, he told me he'd walk me home and stick around if I wanted him to. I nodded dumbly as I started piecing together my thoughts, how likely was it that Imayoshi was lying? Kiyoshi wouldn't have actually had sex with Hanamiya surely? And how would the rest of the Uncrowned Kings have reacted to this? Surely Reo wouldn't want to associate with people like that?

Hyuuga was actually the first one I saw when I opened the door, something in my expression must've given it away as I found myself pulled into the bathroom. I didn't say anything at first as he asked me what had happened, keeping my gaze anywhere but him.

"Babe..." He breathed, holding my face gently. "Did you run into someone?"

"...Imayoshi." I replied for the first time in this interrogation.

He inhaled deeply. "Okay, and what did he say?"

I sighed and told him how the entire conversation went, finishing off with how I was adamant that Kiyoshi wouldn't have sunk to that level. He was quiet for a few moments, probably weighing up what I just said with whatever he already knew - if anything - before pressing his forehead against mine.

"I know that there was something between the two of them. I don't know for sure how it went down so you're probably gonna have to ask him yourself." He murmured, hand stroking my cheek.

"Junpei...you don't think he..."

"I don't know. We only met him at Seirin remember? His life before Seirin is a mystery to us still, he rarely talks about it for a reason, this _could_ be the reason but Imayoshi could just be playing you." Hyuuga stepped away, taking my hand in his as he opened the door. "Just clear your mind and let's tend to Koichi, we'll clear this all up later yeah?"

I bit my lip but nodded, my son was my everything after all. He had been introduced to the world of crayons by Kuroko, paper with colourful scribbles littered the floor and couches, he was still getting used to holding them so most of the lines were Kuroko trying to teach him how to hold a crayon. As soon as I changed into more comfortable clothes and walked into the lounge, he dropped the bright red crayon and reached his arms up for me to pick him up.

As I nuzzled him, holding him closer to me than usual, I overheard Hyuuga in the kitchen, the names 'Imayoshi' and 'Hanamiya' came up followed by a heavy sigh. Koichi's fingers clung to my necklace, for once I didn't bother to make him let it go, I decided that after the horrendous conversation with Imayoshi I wanted some time alone with my son. I told Kuroko that I was going to lie down for a bit and for no-one to disturb me, he nodded even if he wanted to question me.

Koichi seemed to sense something was amiss, he sat on the bed next to me with wide eyes, clinging to his stuffed eagle as I stroked his hair. I mindlessly spoke to him, telling him that I loved him and that a lot of people would say a lot of mean things about me and his dads, how we were too young, too foolish, to raise a child. He tried to bite on the eagle's wing, still watching me as I wrapped an arm around him and pulled him closer to me.

"But people are horrible, they'll say things that aren't true to make you upset...you shouldn't listen to those people."

He hit my face with the bird. I laughed at him and he smiled, eyes lighting up as I laughed more and pulled him close enough to nuzzle his neck again. I heard the door open and raised my head, Kiyoshi stepped into the room, he seemed tense which would make two of us. Koichi gurgled happily and reached out for him, Kiyoshi forced a smile and took him from my arms, I swallowed as he held our son, Imayoshi's words poisoning my thoughts with every passing second.

"So...I hear you ran into--"

"Imayoshi." I cut him off, sitting up and hugging my knees. "Yeah."

Kiyoshi watched how I was fixing my gaze on Koichi. "I...should he be here for this?"

I shrugged. "Depends if you're gonna tell me that Imayoshi was telling the truth or not."

That seemed to answer his question, he took a step back and called for Kuroko, the shadow appeared and was quickly told to look after Koichi for a few minutes whilst we spoke. If he suspected anything, he didn't voice it, he simply nodded and took our son with a small smile, shutting the door firmly behind him.

The silence was horrible. I now fixed my gaze on my knees, not entirely sure what I wanted to hear from him. Yes he fucked Hanamiya? No he didn't but they had a relationship? Yes Imayoshi was telling the truth for once? No he was playing me a fool and got a rise out of me?

"Shun..." He spoke softly, I could hear the heaviness in his chest. "I don't know what...."

"You and Hanamiya." I stated, the venom back in my voice. "What happened? And don't you dare try to fucking sugar-coat it."

He sat on the edge of the bed, not making any move to get close to me, I wasn't sure if this was a good or bad sign. Good sign that he knew I was angry? Bad sign because he felt guilty?

"...we were together for a time."

"When? And how long?"

"Shun I haven't cheated on you--"

"That's not the fucking point Teppei!" I snapped, my stomach was twisting and my chest hurting. "You never told us? Not even when we were facing them?"

"I did! I told Junpei and I told you afterwards." He was trying to stay calm but I sensed he was tearing himself up, he was fighting the urge to snap back at me as his hands clenched into fists.

"...how far did you go?"

He didn't reply straight away. It was like a punch to the gut, it was the first indication that Imayoshi was right. I hugged my knees a little tighter as I waited for a few agonising seconds.

"We...it was before we both presented..."

"What was?"

"We had sex okay! I admit it, I fucked him, he lured me in and then he turned the tables. He held it over me and it happened again and again." His voice rose as he stood up, shoulders trembling as his gaze bore into mine. "Is that what you want from me Shun? You want me to admit that I fucked up?"

My throat was like sandpaper as I stared at him, a mixture of rage and heartbreak rushing through me as he started pacing the room and running his hands through his hair.

"I wanted you to come clean." I stated quietly. "I wanted to laugh in Shoichi's face and tell him he was lying to get a rise out of me."

He turned away from me, hunching his shoulders as I heard him sigh heavily.

"Did you team-mates know?"

"No. Hanamiya threatened to tell them enough times though." He uttered.

"...how did he lure you in then?" I tried not to scoff but I was losing my self-control. "Must've been pretty damn--"

He turned around, all I could see in those eyes were hurt and rage as he approached the bed and was in my face within a few seconds.

"Kindly remember that this was _junior high_. We were in the midst of puberty, we were all struggling with being told about how we'd start presenting, we were questioning our sexuality." He growled. "Whilst you may have had a straightforward transition, some of us didn't."

I wasn't sure how to react. He tilted his head to the side, I hadn't quite worked out what was going on when my judgement clouded over.

"Apparently you like it rough hm? And you'd punish Hanamiya for playing dirty."

"Jealous? Are you jealous Shun? Did you want to be taken like a cheap whore? Because that's how I took him, there was no 'love' in our nights, we took what we could from each other. Do you want to be treated like that?"

"It happened before. My heat wasn't exactly a loving affair was it?"

"Someone had to make sure that Junpei didn't break you." He hummed. "I could've been so much worse, we could've left you there for the others to find."

I swallowed. This was bad. This was a _terrible_ situation to be in. I pressed myself back into the bed, trying to distance myself from this alpha side to my lover.

"I can smell the fear..." He murmured. "Why are you scared?"

"...T-Teppei, I'm not...snap out of it."

"Hm? I thought that was your whole reason for bringing this up? Because you're jealous of what me and Makoto had."

"Teppei we have a _son_." I hissed, trying to shift away. "I don't give a fuck--"

"You do. You wouldn't have gotten hysterical otherwise."

He had me there. He was just as good at trapping me with my own words as...Hanamiya.

"Let me go."

"Hm?"

"Teppei. Let me go."

He regarded me with those strange eyes for a moment, I couldn't remember if I had seen his true alpha side before, I didn't know if I should be scared or not.

"Tell me, why _do_ you care so much?" He asked. "I'm your alpha now."

"But do you love me?" The words tumbled out before I could stop them.

He raised an eyebrow. "Yes Shun I do." He replied.

"...let me go then."

"Answer my question."

"Teppei, I will call for Jun--"

He silenced me, placing a finger to my lips. "Just answer, why?"

I was trembling, for all the talk of alpha instincts, Hyuuga hadn't picked up on what was going on yet. "Because...I didn't know how close you had been to him. Teppei, he kept _pictures_ of the two of you, you clearly meant something to him. And I went around the Winter cup calling his bluff...you told me nothing serious happened between you two and I found out from _Imayoshi_ of all people."

A flicker of confusion washed over him. "...oh... _oh_..."

"Yeah. He grinned me when he told me you used sex as a way to keep Hanamiya under control..."

He backed up slightly, clearly thrown off. I took my chance to slip away from him, standing up on shaky legs and pausing.

"You...I didn't mean for you to..."

 I shook my head and moved to leave the room, he caught my wrist and tugged harshly. "Shun..." He spoke before I tore my hand away.

"Just...leave me alone." I uttered, angry at myself, angry at him.

"No." He snapped, getting off the bed and standing between me and the door. "Shun I'm not letting you leave like this."

"Teppei, please just move out the way. I want to see our son."

He took me by the shoulders and pinned me against the wall, I saw only hurt in his eyes. "Why does it matter to you? It was years ago!"

"Because he's another omega you slept with and decided not to tell me about!"

"Before we knew any of that! He could've been an alpha or a beta!"

"You still--"

"No! I'm not letting you repeat the redundant points, the facts are clear as fucking day Shun. I slept with him when we were much younger and much more confused. I ended it before either of us presented because he was just using me for sex, he was using me from the start and I was a foolish enough person to believe there could've been something more."

I gritted my teeth. His hands were clenching my shoulders painfully. "Let...me...go."

"I never wanted you to find out this way!"

"You never wanted me to find out full stop." I retorted. "You weren't ever gonna tell me, were you?"

"I would've if you--"

"Bought it up? Funnily enough that's what I'm fucking doing!"

"Why are you still so fucking riled up? It's not like your past is entirely clean--"

My body reacted before I could think. His cheek flared red as he moved away, my hand stung as I realised what I had done.

"Oh god..." I uttered. The door burst open, Hyuuga looked at the scene in front of him; me staring at my hand and on the verge of tears, Kiyoshi panting heavily and holding his cheek.

"Okay." He breathed, stepping between us. "Let's take a second to--"

"Oh god I'm sorry." I blurted out, body shaking as I came to terms with everything I had said and done.

He regarded me with hurt eyes. "N-No...I'm the one who should be apologising." He spoke quietly.

Hyuuga pinched the bridge of his nose before stepping closer to me, cupping my face as he checked me over. He gestured to the bed as he turned to Kiyoshi. "You go and get some ice for your face and then come back. We're sorting this out once and for all."

 

\---

 

Hyuuga held me close to him, I had burst into tears within a few moments of the air settling. I felt horrible for making Kiyoshi upset, I felt sick to my stomach at everything he had told me, everything he had gone through, it wasn't fair that he had gone through all of that only for me to remind him of it now.

"Okay." Our captain sighed, stroking my head as Kiyoshi gingerly sat on the edge of the bed, he reached out his free hand to take Kiyoshi's, trying to be the middle ground in this war of emotions. "I think we need to clarify some things between us, not just for our sakes but for Koichi's. A lot of things have been said and have happened, it's not fair on our son for us to be hiding things from each other."

I hummed in agreement, my hand resting on Hyuuga's chest as I waited to see where this was going.

"So, who wants to start?" Hyuuga continued.

"I-I guess I should." Kiyoshi murmured, his cheek wasn't swelling up thankfully, I didn't realise how hard I had slapped him initially but now there was a red hand-print where my hand had connected with his face. "So, I wasn't entirely upfront about my past with Mak--Hanamiya."

Hyuuga nodded for him to keep going, I simply listened as Hyuuga rubbed my back comfortingly.

"Our second year of junior high was when it started. We were officially the top in the league and our matches were requiring less and less effort, so rather than simply training less or inventing new styles of play, Hanamiya started playing dirty in each match. According to him, just winning wasn't enough anymore, he wanted to completely crush his opponents. We turned a blind eye to it at first, hoping he'd grow up and play properly during our last year..."

"He didn't though." Hyuuga finished, offering a little help as Kiyoshi seemed to lose himself in his thoughts.

"We figured that, maybe if we got some tougher opponents then maybe he'd fall back in line. Reo and Hayama tried to reason with him, Nebuya wanted nothing to do with him, I was the one who had to take a more aggressive front." He continued. "I cornered him one day after a practice match where he had almost gotten himself fouled twice. His attitude sucked back then like it does now, he started getting in my face, saying that I was 'too good' and that I let other players walk all over me."

I could just imagine how that went down, except with more childish remarks.

"I didn't have the patience I do now, I got irritated and told him that basketball wasn't just about winning. Of course he made fun of me for it, I snapped and shoved him against a locker to try and prove a point but he took it as a challenge. He started spinning this theory about how I was the dark horse of the team, that I appeared all calm and 'cuddly' on the surface but deep down I was just as terrible as him."

"So you wanted to prove him...wrong?" Hyuuga offered. Kiyoshi shook his head as he looked anywhere but at us.

"I don't know. I just remember challenging his theory, next thing I accurately remember is us..." He shook his head again, biting down on one of his knuckles as he fought to keep his composure. Hyuuga squeezed his hand to try and keep him grounded.

"It's okay. You don't have to describe that part." He told our lover. "What happened after that?"

Kiyoshi sniffed loudly. "I-I don't know, it's all a blur really. I know we did it a few times after that, I stupidly thought that there was something more between us. We'd spent a few afternoons together before and after practice, that's where the pictures came from, and I honestly felt happy around him. Sure he was unconventional and harsh but...I dunno...I guess I liked the idea of him being with me having a positive effect on him? But no, if anything me giving into him was making it all worse..."

"So when did you end it?" I asked, voice cracking.

He regarded me with glazed eyes. "After we were all beaten by the miracles. He was furious and I couldn't face any of them after that loss so we just stopped. The next time I saw him was at our match in the Winter cup."

I nodded. "...I'm sorry for making you..." I mumbled, not sure how to word it. He shook his head and reached for my hand.

"No Shun, you had every right to call me out on it...I-I wish I told you everything in the first place. I'm sorry you had to find out through Imayoshi, that I even bought up your past to try and justify my actions--"

"It's okay Teppei." I offered a small smile. "I-I'm sorry I got so hysterical and for slapping you..."

He shook his head again. "...that was my...the alpha speaking back then." He uttered, averting his gaze. "About your heat, I wouldn't have dared to break you or humiliate--"

I sat up and pressed a finger to his trembling lips. "I know...I mean it was damn terrifying hearing you say that. I-I don’t think I want to see that side of you again..."

"I-I don't blame you."

Hyuuga didn't say anything, he simply looked between us as we regarded each other silently. Kiyoshi's eyes welled up with tears before he took my hand and kissed it, I crawled over Hyuuga and pulled Kiyoshi into my hold, feeling dwarfed as he buried his face in the crook of my neck. I rubbed his back, feeling every sob that left his lips as he clung to my shoulders, blurting out more apologies as he trembled, a knock at the door spurred Hyuuga to move, I pulled Kiyoshi more onto the bed so he could rest his head on my chest as I lay down.

"Looks like someone's here to see his slightly dysfunctional family." Kagami announced as he followed Hyuuga into the room, holding Koichi who seemed blissfully unaware of the drama that had occurred.

"More than slightly." Hyuuga remarked, gently lifting our son from the ace's hands. "Did you want something Taiga?"

He shrugged. "Tetsuya's worried about you so I said I'd find out what's going on. Also Koga called, he's apparently worried."

Hyuuga briefly explained that something had come up between us but that it was all okay now. Kagami regarded us with a raised eyebrow but nodded, he said he'd assure Kuroko everything was fine but we'd have to tell Koganei ourselves. Koichi was placed on the bed next to me, he shuffled towards Kiyoshi, hands outstretched as he made various noises to try and communicate.

I patted his back, helping him move close enough to poke Kiyoshi's nose. Hyuuga and I exchanged a glance as Kagami left, Kiyoshi regarded our son with sad eyes, tenderly reaching out and ruffling his hair. Koichi was getting put out at his dad not being his usual smiling self, making disappointed noises and looking at me as if to ask what was going on.

"Papa's not feeling so great kiddo." Kiyoshi murmured as Koichi looked back at him.

I ran a hand through Kiyoshi's hair, watching as Koichi tilted his head slightly. "...P-aah.."

Kiyoshi's eyes widened, I was actually surprised myself. Hyuuga stayed silent as Kiyoshi lifted his head to look at our son better. "What...did you just try to say 'papa'?"

Koichi looked around confused, I sat up and collected him in my arms. "Can you say papa?" I asked him with a smile. "Pa-pa."

He moved his lips but only a small noise came out, it didn't sound anything like the word papa. I smiled and kissed his cheek, glancing at Kiyoshi before offering him Koichi. He looked a little stunned as our son gurgled happily in his arms, hand grasping at his chin. Hyuuga chuckled as he wrapped an arm around me.

"Reckon he'll mature that quickly?" He asked.

I shrugged. "He's got you two as fathers so I wouldn't discount it...I'm chalking this up to pot luck."

Kiyoshi smiled, a genuine happy smile, and Koichi made an excited noise in return. It was clear that he was quickly picking up on when things were amiss with us. I honestly didn't know what I would've done today if it hadn't had been for Koichi, I had been tempted to not come home and retreat to my family's home instead but I couldn't bring myself to let all of this affect my son. As Hyuuga had said, it wasn't fair on him for us to argue, that didn't mean that there wouldn't be disagreements in the future but that we should try to keep him safe from it. Of course we couldn't protect him forever, but we'd try our hardest to protect him for as long as possible. No child should ever have to listen to their parents arguing, that was something I was very conscious of.

 


	27. Wait and see

 

With the end of summer quickly approaching, Kiyoshi and Hyuuga were suddenly very aware that we had to move into our apartment so they started packing me off to different relative's and friend's houses each day. At first I was slightly irritated by their attitude that I should be 'out of the way' but they quickly explained their theory that I was starting back at school that semester, so I should spend as much time as possible with Koichi before then, also that he needed to get used to being with other people so it was a win-win situation.

I had spent most of the week so far with my own family, my sisters getting to know their nephew and Koichi suddenly discovering that girls were a thing. He wasn't sure what to make of Mai at first but she won him over by sneaking him a cookie when Aya distracted me. My mom was more than happy to look after him so I could relax with my family. In a weird way, it was almost like things hadn't changed much between my sisters and I, Aya still playfully fought with me and Mai still demanded to be picked up even though she was far from the toddler that she used to be.

As the final few days of the summer vacation dawned, I ended up at Takao's house. After the months of practice, inter high and exams we had finally managed to organise the point guard reunion that Kasamatsu had suggested - excluding two obvious people from this fray. It wasn't exactly hard to get the rest of us together though, Akashi and Furihata were practically glued to each other all summer and Kasamatsu was more than happy to get away from his university work.

We had tried to get the Yousen point guard involved but according to Himuro he was busy with...other things. I had only actually met Fukui once but Takao seemed to have everyone's number - almost as terrifying as Akashi knowing exactly where all the miracles lived - so he called Fukui directly and they had a small back-and-forth before Takao got to the point and asked him if he wanted to hang out with the rest of us point guards. Whatever Fukui's response was, it had Takao in stitches and I exchanged a glance with Kasamatsu as we sat on the floor of Takao's lounge, Koichi was just starting to try and crawl which was terrifying in its own way.

"Okay so we'll see you in an hour? Cool."

Fukui's panicked tone came through as Takao immediately moved to end the call. It seemed that the Shuutoku point guard wasn't letting him escape this reunion that easily.

"Did you just pressure him into this?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Nah, he was totally up for it." Takao replied with a grin, lying on his stomach and peering at Koichi. "Did Furi and Akashit say when they're getting here?"

"Stop calling Akashi that." I told him, knowing full well that he'd stop as soon as the Rakuzan captain was actually here. "And Furi said they were going on a lunch-date first."

Kasamatsu snorted as Koichi stared at him, my son wasn't sure what to make of all this attention but he seemed to be taking it in his stride as he edged closer to the former captain. Kasamatsu wasn't entirely sure how to react either so it was rather amusing when I picked up Koichi and gestured for him to hold my son.

"So I guess we'll just be waiting for Fukui when those two show up?" He asked, cautiously holding Koichi against his chest.

"If he does." I replied.

"He will~ I'll just call Himuro and bitch to him--"

A knock at the door spurred Takao to leave us in the lounge. Koichi and Kasamatsu regarded each other with equally unsure gazes, I couldn't help but laugh slightly as Koichi hit Kasamatsu's nose and shrieked in amusement at how the other winced slightly.

"So it's like that is it? You abuse your dad's like that?" He smirked, Koichi bopped him on the nose as if to make a point. "Right."

"Well now you know how Kise feels." I remarked.

"Ryouta knows it's a show of affection..." Kasamatsu replied. "You however, just seem to like--" He was cut off by Koichi placing a hand over his mouth. I completely lost it, when Takao returned with Akashi and Furihata behind him, they found Kasamatsu and me laughing at Koichi's unspoken sassiness.

"I think he's been learning bad habits from Kuroko." Furihata mused as he picked Koichi out of Kasamatsu's hold. Koichi gurgled happily as he recognised the brunet and smiled at him. Akashi merely regarded his boyfriend fondly as Furihata started talking to my son, he never failed to come up with something to make Koichi laugh and it didn't go unnoticed by everyone.

"It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest." I sighed as Takao started finding the console controllers now that there were more than four people here. "He picks up on little quirks like that really easily."

"Who would you say he's most like?" Akashi asked quietly, the Rakuzan captain was quite calm and laid back around us when none of the other miracles were in sight, his softer side reminded me of Furihata in a good way.

I thought for a few moments. "He's got Hyuuga's temperament definitely, he's quite good at picking up on changes in mood like Kiyoshi."

"He's very smiley, like you." Furihata added. "I wouldn't be surprised if his first word is a pun."

"Oh please no." Kasamatsu grumbled with a smile, accepting the controller offered by Takao.

I laughed. "Well, we thought he nearly said 'papa' about a week ago, but he's not shown any improvement since."

Koichi's attention was now on Akashi so Furihata passed him over, eagerly accepting the controller from Takao. I declined to play at first, intending to let Akashi play but he insisted that he was more than okay with holding Koichi. That was the last of it as Koichi wriggled happily in the red-head's arms, I tossed his stuffed eagle in Akashi's general direction before Takao decided to get the video game session under way. Surprisingly, Koichi fell asleep in Akashi's arms. We had just finished another round of Mario kart when Furihata audibly gasped, we all looked at the Rakuzan captain to find my son clutching his toy and snuggled against Akashi's chest.

"Sei let me take a picture." Furihata declared, Akashi’s face flushed as he watched his boyfriend take out his phone. "Reo's gonna die when he sees this."

"Kouki--"

"Please Sei, you look so adorable~"

I giggled as Kasamatsu tried to hide his laughter behind a cough, it wasn't every day we saw the other captain blushing at being called adorable, usually it was Furihata who'd be blushing. Takao told us he'd get us some drinks and snacks before Fukui was supposed to arrive - whether he would or not remained to be seen - whilst Furihata's phone lit up with a response. My own phone buzzed in my pocket and I found that he hadn't simply taken a picture, he had uploaded it to snapchat and now I had a very confused Hyuuga asking why Akashi had our son.

Kasamatsu groaned out loud, apparently Kise had seen the same picture and was _very_ put out that he hadn't been invited to this thing and he was 'on his way over immediately'. Akashi didn't say anything as Furihata giggled, leaning over and kissing his cheek, Koichi's nose scrunched up which was usually a warning he was about to wake up. I got a panicked look from both of them as he started stirring, I half wanted to see how they'd react to a cranky Koichi but gestured for Akashi to pass me my son quickly.

"Hey Koichi~" I smiled as he woke up. "Was Akashi a good pillow?"

He let out a small cry at being awake, I shushed him and cuddled him closer, Takao returned with a tray of drinks and bowl of potato chips for us, asking why his phone was blowing up about some picture of Akashi. Luckily, Koichi didn't seem too cranky as I kissed his forehead and offered his eagle to him. When there was a knock at the door, Takao assumed it was Fukui but got the somewhat rude surprise of a certain blond ranting about being left out of the fun. Kasamatsu quickly appeased Kise by pulling him to sit down and giving him a chaste kiss.

"So...I didn't know what to get Koichi to eat..." Takao confessed as he served the cans of soda. "I asked Shin-chan what he thought but he said it depended if you were still nursing and--"

"It's okay." I told him. "Have you got any fruit? If you mash it up then he'll eat it, and make a mess at the same time."

"Ooh~ can I feed him?" Kise bolted upright. "I-I mean...if that's okay?"

Takao smiled and went to see what he had, Koichi was calm enough to be put on the floor again, he eyed the bowl of chips with wide eyes which made me smile. Kise was quick to distract him with eagle, lying across Kasamatsu's lap as he did so. It was great to see how Koichi wasn't flinching away from anyone anymore, he was rather shy at the beginning of the summer, only really comfortable around those of us living in the apartment and Koganei and Mitobe who visited regularly. So to see him so at ease around our other friends made me feel a little less guilty about going back to class in a few days.

"Right, I found some apples?" Takao poked his head around the door. "How should I..."

I held up a hand and got up. "I'll come and help you."

With Koichi distracted by Kise's childish nature, I followed Takao into his family's small kitchen. I gathered he had been left alone for a few days whilst his parents took his little sister to visit other family, or at least that's what the mess gave away. He rambled away about how Midorima had spent the past few nights there and how they were both eager to face Seirin again, I nodded as I set about preparing the small snack for Koichi, slicing and dicing the apple before softening it in a pan of boiling water.

"He might not eat all of it, he's only just starting to properly eat solids." I told Takao as I mashed the now softened pieces. "But it's good for him to start now, I'll feed him when we get home."

"Oh yeah how's the move going?" He asked.

I shrugged. "From what I know, the apartment comes with furniture but apparently they're sorting out some replacement stuff. Kiyoshi's gotten his grandmother to take charge of Koichi's nursery and hopefully we'll properly be moving in over the weekend."

"Kagami's gonna miss you." He laughed, handing me a small bowl for the now mashed apple.

"Kuroko's moving in with him before Christmas I believe. Plus we're only gonna be a few doors away, we'll probably have him around every other night."

Takao shrugged. "Well you'll have to have a house-warming party!"

I laughed and shook my head. "No offence but I think that's the last thing we need."

As soon as we walked back into the lounge, Koichi's attention went from Kise balancing a stuffed eagle on his head to the bowl in my hands. He must've realised what it meant as he smiled and reached out for me as I knelt next to Kise and offered the spoon to him.

"Don't force him, he'll mouth around the spoon and eat it in his own time. You just need to encourage him." I told him, my attention turning to Koichi who had shuffled a little closer. "Hey there little man, you ready for some noms?"

"Noms?" Kasamatsu repeated as Kise nodded and took the spoon from me.

"Yeah, Hyuuga started it and now Koichi associates the word with eating." I replied, watching as Kise offered Koichi the first helping.

My son was all wide-eyed as Kise mimicked eating, I wasn't surprised when half the food ended up on Koichi's cheeks and chin rather than in his mouth. Akashi and Furihata had stolen the couch whilst the rest of us were distracted by Koichi, Furihata was gazing fondly at Koichi as Takao wiped at his face. We had just finished clearing Koichi up when there was another knock at the door, Takao bolted to it and all we heard was a lot of complaining followed by Takao exclaiming that Fukui was late.

I gathered Koichi in my arms, he nuzzled my neck as the Yousen point guard joined the fray. He didn't exactly seem thrilled to be here but he smiled all the same as he ran a hand through his blond hair, a duller blond than that of Kise's and less well-kept.

"Sup?" He greeted as he sat next to Kasamatsu. "Been a while."

"Yeah." Kasamatsu replied. "How's life?"

Fukui shrugged. "So-so. Kinda glad to be rid of that bumbling giant."

"Murasakibaracchi is a nice guy!" Kise cut in.

"You're not the one who had to constantly pick up after him."

"You're forgetting Ryouta and I were on the same team as Atsushi." Akashi added, Furihata playfully slapped him to snap him out of his Emperor eye before he really started going.

"Hm...yeah." Fukui murmured, accepting a can of soda from Takao. His gaze fell on me and then Koichi. "...wait...you're Seirin's--"

"Yeah! Izuki's the point guard of Seirin!" Takao cut in.

Fukui raised an eyebrow. "You were pregnant during the Winter cup? When you played us?"

I nodded slowly, unsure where he was going with this. "I mean it wasn't easy."

He nodded. "I wondered why Himuro and Mura kept disappearing. I thought you crazy miracles were getting wasted together."

Kise giggled. "That's an idea we could--"

"No." Akashi interrupted. "No, we're not doing that."

"But why~"

Akashi raised an eyebrow. "You and Aomine drinking would only end badly, Murasakibara would just eat instead, Midorima sure as hell wouldn't get involved and Kuroko physically _can't_ drink alcohol."

"Akashicchi's a slutty drunk." Kise whispered to me.

"Ryouta!"

"Sei!"

Kasamatsu sighed as Fukui and Takao burst into laughter. Kise narrowly avoided the couch pillow thrown at him. Koichi squealed at the sudden laughter in the room and clung to my shirt as he watched Kise throw the pillow back at Akashi.

"You alphas and your temperament..." Fukui murmured.

I glanced at his neck, I couldn't immediately see the tell-tell mark but the comment alone was enough to cause suspicion.

"Omega?" I asked.

"Yup." He replied, glancing at me. "No I'm not intending to mate anytime soon."

Kise giggled slightly. "Wait who's your alpha?"

"What's it to you?"

"Isn't it that tall guy on your team?" Takao asked, ignoring the fact that _everyone_ on that team was tall by his standards.

"Mura?!" Kasamatsu spluttered. "But I thought--"

"No!" Fukui snapped. "No no, I'm not dating that....agh. I mean. God dammit Takao this is why I didn't want to come."

Akashi chuckled to himself as he watched Fukui blush slightly, Takao shrugged as he opened another can and took a sip.

"So...who _is_ your--"

"Wei Liu if you guys _must_ know." Fukui glared at Kise.

"...isn't he taller than--"

"Yes I know he's taller than me!"

"Wow someone's defensive." Kasamatsu got Kise in a headlock to try and shut his boyfriend up, instead Kise squawked about his lover being mean to him. "But the _real_ question here...how big is his dick?" Kise managed to ask whilst nearly getting choked by his boyfriend.

"Oh my god Kise..." I sighed as Fukui spluttered and glared at the miracle.

"I'm so glad that you didn't attend Yousen. Okamura would've killed you probably."

"Forget him, _I'm_ gonna kill you in a minute Ryouta." Kasamatsu growled. "Stop being a brat."

Kise pouted at his boyfriend until Kasamatsu released him with a muttered apology for being rough, I shook my head as Koichi squirmed in my arms at being held for so long, as I put him on the floor again he quickly found his stuffed eagle and held on to it by its beak. Fukui regarded him with a curious gaze as Takao started rambling about how being a short omega isn't a bad thing because then the tall alpha's end up being the big spoon. I kept out of that conversation, texting Kiyoshi instead to check on what him and Hyuuga were up to.

"So what I'm really saying is, it's okay to have a tall alpha because they can reach the stuff on high shelves--"

"Takao shut up already." Fukui sighed with a smile. "I'm not _that_ butthurt about it."

"Could've fooled us." Kise murmured, getting a shove from Kasamatsu.

Koichi was oblivious to the entire conversation as he looked around the room. It was mid-afternoon and usually I'd be setting him down for a nap but that obviously wasn't going to happen here. Takao suggested we played some more video games to prevent Kise saying anything else to cause an argument. Fukui's more playful side came out as Takao challenged him to a game of smash bros, Furihata tore himself away from Akashi's hold to pick Koichi up and make him squeal at suddenly being in the air. I smiled, hearing his laugh made my heart melt a little.

 

\---

 

"Well I have a train to catch, I guess I'll see you all around?" Fukui sighed, the evening was drawing in and we had pretty much eaten most of Takao's food between us.

"It's been great to see you." Kasamatsu replied, ruffling Kise's hair as the miracle dozed in his lap. "Sorry about this baka's comments."

Fukui shrugged as he slipped his jacket on and checked his pockets. "I've had worse. Himuro's a little shit about it even now. But yeah, it's been good to see you all, even if we'd hardly spoken before."

"Save travels." Akashi remarked as Takao showed Fukui out. Koichi was getting tired but was still smiling as Furihata entertained him with the stuffed eagle. I yawned as I tapped a text to Kiyoshi to ask if he was home yet, he told me Kagami was home so I could head back whenever I wanted, he didn't really pick up on how tired I was.

"Do you want me and Sei to walk you guys home?" Furihata asked me. "Sei's Tokyo home is only a few blocks down."

I smiled at him. "If it's not any trouble."

Akashi seemed content with watching Furihata interact, Kise got woken up by Kasamatsu who declared it was time they were on their way too. Takao said we could stay as long as we wanted, I would've taken him up on his offer but Koichi was going to start getting cranky sooner or later. He was already starting to get moody as Furihata cuddled him, I didn't pay much attention at first as Furihata had handled Koichi's temper tantrums a few times before.

"Someone's sleepy aren't they?" He cooed. "Don't worry, Sei and I will get you and mommy home soon. You'll be cuddled and kissed until you fall asleep."

Koichi let out a small cry, nuzzling Furihata's neck as he tried to get his point across.

"Yes, yes I know...you want sleep _now_. Well nothing's stopping you."

Akashi cleared his throat, I glanced over and saw him blushing slightly at his boyfriend's seemingly natural motherly instincts. Koichi fell quiet, I raised an eyebrow at Furihata as he gave me a panicked look.

"I-I didn't...oh god." He murmured. "What do I do?"

Takao chuckled from the doorway. "Now you kidnap him."

I rolled my eyes as I stood up. "No, now we get him home before he wakes up."

Akashi took a few moments to actually respond, I couldn't blame him, Furihata did look like a deer in the headlights as he tried to slip his shoes on without waking Koichi. I quickly gathered up Koichi's small collection of toys and shoved them into the bag, Takao asked if he needed to walk us to the train station but I shook my head. Furihata and Akashi accompanied me all the way home, Kuroko answered the door before I even punched in the entrance code. Once we were inside, Kagami got the other two drinks and even offered to call a cab instead of making them walk.

Akashi shrugged. "It's up to Kouki."

I tuned out of the conversation as I took Koichi into the bedroom, I gently set him down on the bed so I could change him, with any luck I'd be able to get him changed before he woke up and demanded food. Kuroko seemed to read my mind as he appeared with an already prepared bottle for Koichi, I thanked him as my son stirred and started bawling.

"Mr Grumpy-head is back." I remarked, fixing the fasteners on his little blue onesie. He accepted the bottle greedily, quietening in an instant and eagerly drinking. "Now now, don't go too fast or you'll make yourself ill." I told him as I eased the bottle away from him so he'd remember to swallow.

"Teppei's appetite?" Kuroko suggested.

"I don't know, he's just very hasty." I smiled. "Slowly yeah?" I offered the bottle back to him and he seemed to get the idea, slowly blinking at me as he emptied the bottle. As I rubbed his back, I heard the front door open and my two lovers return from wherever they had gotten to.

"Evening love." Kiyoshi greeted as he opened the bedroom door with a tired smile.

"Hey." I called back, smiling over my shoulder as Koichi made an excited noise at seeing Kiyoshi and Hyuuga. "Oi, stop kicking me you." I chided him playfully.

"He's excited, leave him be." Hyuuga sighed, kissing me on the cheek as he walked over. "May I?"

I passed Koichi to him, listening to him gurgling happily as Hyuuga cuddled him. Kiyoshi hugged me from behind, kissing my neck as I leaned into his hold. "How's the apartment?"

"Nearly done." He hummed. "Nanna's putting the finishing touches to his nursery tomorrow."

"Nice. So we're moving this weekend?"

"Officially we're already there, we have the keys and Junpei's moved most of his stuff in today. I'll be sorting mine out tomorrow..."

"And me?"

He chuckled. "How do you fancy letting Koga look after Koichi tomorrow? We could use your approval with a few things."

I smiled. "I'm sure Koga will be more than happy."

Hyuuga kissed Koichi's forehead. "And you should be sleeping, little guy." He murmured. "Give Shun a rest yeah?"

Kiyoshi hummed in agreement, picking me up bridal style and carrying me out into the lounge. Furihata and Akashi were just leaving, Kuroko was helping Kagami cook stir fry so we had the couch to ourselves. After the whole Hanamiya incident Kiyoshi had been trying to make it up to me, most of his gestures included breakfast in bed, back massages and looking after Koichi so I could rest more. Despite me saying that he didn't need to do anything except not hide things from me or Hyuuga again.

"You know I'm not holding it against you right?" I murmured as he held me. "The whole Hanamiya thing."

"I feel bad still." He replied.

"Well just know that I forgive you, yeah?" I took one of his hands in mine. "We have more important things to think about. If anything, we should be showing Junpei gratitude for handling the whole thing maturely."

Kiyoshi chuckled. "He's a natural leader, what do you expect?"

I sighed, burying my face in the crook of his neck. "Hopefully Koichi takes after him then, instead of my emotional self."

I felt his hand gently rub my back, he hummed as he thought. "Being emotional isn't a bad thing, it's better than being heartless like...certain people."

"I guess."

"I think between the three of us, he'll have a heart of gold, a temper to match and won't take no for an answer."

"He'll be a determined little devil won't he?" I giggled. "God what have we unleashed on this world?"

Kiyoshi shrugged. "Who knows. He could be a basketball prodigy, an artist, a doctor, a rockstar...we'll just have to wait and see."

 


	28. New Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter nearly killed me with feels. Idk why.

"I hope he doesn't get separation anxiety..." I sighed as Koganei and Mitobe left with Koichi.

"He'll be fine babe, don't worry so much." Hyuuga reassured me, pulling me into a hug. "As much as we say you need to spend time with him, you both need time apart y'know?"

"Koga's one of our best friends and one of the guys Koichi is most used to so it'll be good for him." Kiyoshi added. "Plus you can help us finish the apartment off without worrying about keeping him entertained."

I nodded, nuzzling Hyuuga's neck as he held me. We didn't really have to rush to sort out the final adjustments to our new home, but the longer we left it, the quicker I'd start getting worried about Koichi. Kiyoshi called his grandmother so she could organise to arrive shortly, I hadn't actually seen any of the apartment except for the occasional snapchat from Kiyoshi so I was curious to see how similar it was to Kagami's.

The door opened into a small hallway, a closet on my right had been dubbed as the area for shoes and coats, although currently it held empty paint cans. Rather than a door, there was an archway leading into the main living space where kitchen that overlooked the lounge from a slightly raised platform. I ran my fingers along the back of the couch, there was a small stone fireplace jutting out of the wall which looked rather bare, I gathered that they wanted me to decide how to decorate the mantle. Most of the flooring was smooth wood, I was a little concerned for Koichi but it was something that a rug could solve easily. The smell of paint was strong as I walked into the master bedroom, whoever chose the colour scheme seemed to know what they were doing; three of the walls were a calm pastel green and the fourth was an off white. I raised an eyebrow as I looked at the large bed, the sheets a light shade of blue to try and compliment the wall behind it, pillows ranging in shades of blue and green.

"Anyone would think you're going for a theme here." I smiled over my shoulder at them.

"But do you like it?" Hyuuga asked.

"Yeah, I do. It's easy on the eyes." I replied. "So where's Koichi's room?"

Kiyoshi chuckled. "Nanna still has some things to add so she wants you to wait until she's finished. Do you wanna check the bathroom?"

I nodded, following as Kiyoshi opened a sliding door in the bedroom wall. It was a reasonably sized bathroom and there wasn't anything special to it, there was both a shower and a bathtub which was a little odd for an apartment but I shrugged. My curiosity over Koichi's room was mounting but I was going to respect Nanna's wishes, deciding to investigate the kitchen instead, as someone who didn't really do a whole lot of cooking I didn't really have a preference over it but for what it was worth, the modern kitchen was good enough for me.

The one thing that the apartment seemed to lack was a personal touch. This was probably what they both meant by needing my approval, they didn't want to take over the entire apartment so soon. I did notice that they had both bought a few boxes each of stuff from their family homes but they were left untouched mainly.

"So where do you wanna start?" Kiyoshi asked as I cast my eyes over the lounge, I noticed the glass pane door that led out to a small balcony and hummed slightly.

"I guess here would be a good place." I murmured, my gaze now taking in the rather bland walls. "These need some colour or just _something_. I dunno, I'm not the only one living here."

They both exchanged amused glances. "I'm sure we can find something..." Hyuuga mused. "Tell you what, write a list of general ideas and then we can go to the indoor market and see if anything catches our eye. Teppei can stay here and help Nanna finish up Koichi's room.

I smiled. "It's a date."

 

\---

 

I didn't usually _like_ the indoor market, it was always overcrowded and some of the deals weren't as good as the vendors claimed, but somehow having Hyuuga with me made the whole process more enjoyable. We actually dragged my sister Aya out with us so she could help solves any disputes between us, she was quite good at bargaining with the vendors too.

"Ooh what about this one?" Hyuuga asked, pointing at a canvas print. We had been stood in the same tent for ten minutes looking for something to hang in the lounge, Aya had gone off in search of some drinks so we were left to our own devices.

"...no." I replied. "What about something more..." I trailed off as I spotted another one; a white cherry blossom branch on a dark blue background that mimicked the night sky, a pale full moon adding to the contrast in colours. "...Junpei."

He titled his head and saw what I was looking at. "Looks nice. Where would you wanna hang it?"

I shrugged. "Maybe, the wall space between the door to our room and Koichi's? It would fit there?"

"I thought you wanted a mirror to go there?"

I rolled my eyes but smiled. "Okay, maybe between the fireplace and the balcony door?"

He nodded, ruffling my hair. "I think that'll work."

We took a few more minutes to look around the rest of the prints, none of them caught our eye so we bought that one, Aya bought us both a cold drink and admired the print. She quickly told us that she spotted another stall selling canvas prints and thought they looked pretty cool, so we followed her through the maze of stalls and crowds of people coming to another small tent that was boasting fine art for reasonable prices.

"I was thinking maybe a small animal one for Koichi?" She suggested, gesturing to a table of small prints, each one couldn't be much bigger than a notepad. I glanced them over; cats, dogs, tigers, foxes and various pandas all looked equally cute, I wasn't sure which he'd like most as there wasn't a husky one.

"What about a bird? He loves that eagle Takao got him." Hyuuga hummed in my ear.

I nodded, turning my attention to the birds, there was one that resembled an eagle; brown wings spread wide as it caught a fish out of a river. It didn't really seem like something Koichi would like, my eyes flicked back to one of the other prints and I knew instantly that it was perfect; it was a panda cub gnawing on a chunk of bamboo, it gave off the same mischievous vibe that Koichi did.

"This one." I stated, picking it up and looking at Hyuuga. "I swear Koichi has the same expression some days."

He laughed. "I guess? Whatever you say babe."

Aya took the print from my hands and was adamant that she'd buy it as a house-warming gift for us. I wasn't about to try and argue with my older sister so I tugged Hyuuga to check out some more art, I figured we'd need one more to liven up the lounge a bit more. I wasn't surprised when Hyuuga spotted the artwork of the samurai rider, I'd seen a lot of art of warlords and warriors that were rather intense and somewhat gory but this one was much more majestic; a silhouette of a warrior with his sword arm extended whilst on horseback.

"So?" I asked as he stared at it.

"It's a samurai warrior on horseback." He replied as if I couldn't tell, I smiled though and let him ramble a bit about it before I nudged him.

"Just buy it." I sighed.

"Seriously?"

"Well it's a colourful silhouette, it's not gory and maybe Koichi will ask about it one day and you can nerd out on him. Plus you _clearly_ like it."

He kissed my cheek unexpectedly. "I love you."

"I love you too?" I replied. "It's just a picture--"

"But you remember the little things. That's what I meant..." He murmured. "I wasn't sure if you remembered that I like this kind of stuff."

I took his hand in mine and gave it a squeeze. "Considering Riko made you break your warlord figurines as a way to get you to properly shoot three-pointers...yeah I do remember."

"Gee thanks for reminding me." He sighed dramatically. "Anyway, we should be getting back."

I shook my head as he bought the print, Aya raised an eyebrow at me as we waited outside the tent for him, I playfully punched her arm before she could make any comments about us 'being as bad a married couple'. As we walked back through the market, I sent a text to Mitobe for an update on what craziness Koganei was up to with my son. I got a few emoticons back which reminded me why I rarely texted him but I also got some actual words detailing that Koga was trying to get Koichi to say his name but with little success.

Kiyoshi approved of the three purchases and immediately started on hanging them on the wall, I took note of the mirror hanging on the wall between the two bedroom doors and smiled.

"So this is what you did with the shells from the beach." I remarked, each corner of the rectangular mirror had a large shell embedded in it, dark blue wood making up the rest of the frame.

"Yep, Junpei's dad helped me with it." Kiyoshi replied as he tried to get the blossom print to hang on the wall. "I figured that Koichi would like it too."

"Speaking of which, can I look at his room yet?"

The door to my son's room opened and Kiyoshi's grandmother smiled as she greeted me with a nod. "You're looking well dear."

I returned her smile. "Yeah, I feel more...normal."

"Well I'm glad to hear that."

Kiyoshi ruffled my hair as he appeared beside me. "Hey nanna can he see Koichi's room now?"

Her smile grew a little wider. "Of course! I was just putting the finishing touches to it." She eagerly invited me into the room, it was smaller than the other bedroom but still a reasonable size for a nursery. The walls were painted a pale blue with framed photos all along one of them, I recognised one of them as a picture of me when I first started playing mini-basketball with Hyuuga, the two of us grinning as we both showed off our medals for competing in a local tournament.

"...how did you get this picture Teppei?" I asked, gesturing to the frame.

"Your mom." He shrugged. "I asked her if she had any photos of you when you started playing and that was the one she gave me."

I smiled, trying not to get emotional over this simple picture. I turned my attention to the rest of the room; Koichi's bed looked more like a traditional futon set on top off a small chest of drawers, it looked rather cosy with the plump cream pillows and colourful blankets. I wasn't overly sure about how safe he'd be if he rolled over until Nanna showed me how a small railing could be raised and snapped into place to mimic a crib.

"...okay fess up." I turned to Kiyoshi with a playful smile. "There's no way you engineered that."

He laughed. "Nah, this was the combined effort of my grandpa and Junpei's dad. I didn't even ask them, apparently Nanna decided that this would be easier to adapt for when Koichi gets older and they just kind of...went with it."

"They were surprisingly efficient." Nanna remarked. "Dunno if their sons are the same."

"They can be." I mused, taking note of the rest of the furniture, mainly storage for Koichi's clothes and toys, the fluffy rug covering most of the floor space, the armchair in the corner of the room, the small night-light on the shelf next to the bed and the shelves that were just waiting for small knick-knacks and more pictures to be placed on them.

"You like it?" Kiyoshi asked as I sighed.

"I love it, but I'm not the one you have to please here." I remarked with a smile.

Kiyoshi laughed, we finished putting the artwork on the walls and I pointed out how I wanted some rugs for the lounge as Koichi was going to start crawling soon, they both nodded and said they'd sort it out. With nothing else to do but pack up my things from Kagami's place and collect stuff from my family home, we locked up the apartment, thanking Nanna for her help as we did so, and retreated to our temporary home.

When Koganei and Mitobe dropped Koichi off, Koganei babbled on about how Koichi was very vocal about not wanting to give up his new favourite thing; one of their framed pictures of team Seirin at the Winter Cup, and so that was why he was clutching it tightly. I raised an eyebrow at my son and he just smiled back, pushing the picture frame against my chest.

"Well I suppose we can find somewhere in your new room for it." I told him.

"Oh wait, you've moved in?" Koganei asked, he seemed tired but I wasn't about to point it out.

"Tomorrow. We're waiting for some of the paint smell to go first, Hyuuga's airing the apartment out tonight with the air con so hopefully I'll be able to show this little man his new room."

Koichi gurgled happily in my arms, gnawing slightly on the picture frame. I promised Koganei that I'd get the frame back to them if nothing else, but he just shrugged and told me that Koichi might as well keep it. I smiled as they left, turning my attention to Koichi.

"So, you stole a picture from uncle Koga?" I remarked, taking it from him and looking at the captured memory. It was strange to think that it was nearly a year since that tournament, that it was nearly a year since my first heat and all of this chaos started. Good chaos, but chaos all the same.

He calmed down quickly that evening, after being fed he was cuddled by Hyuuga until he fell asleep. Kagami and Kuroko cooked a meal for all of us, the last we'd share as room-mates, and once Koichi was in bed we sat down and quickly started talking about this year's Winter Cup. I idly took part in the conversation, not really choosing to focus on basketball but more on how the new semester was looming. Getting back into basketball was one thing, but getting back into the day-to-day school-life on top of raising a kid was another thing entirely.

I snuggled up to Kiyoshi that night, seeking comfort in his hold as Hyuuga slept on his back a lot more frequently. I felt Kiyoshi's stubble rub against my cheek as he kissed me, I hummed and returned the gesture, feeling his arms tighten around me as he sighed in content.

"I love you." He whispered. "I love you all so much."

"I love you too." I whispered back.

 

\---

 

"And here's your room." I declared as I opened the door to Koichi's bedroom, he had been in awe at the rest of the apartment so far, confused by the new surroundings but curious to explore them. "What do you think?"

He looked around with wide eyes, I smiled as he let out a small laugh-like sound and fixed his gaze on the pictures that hung on the wall, it seemed that he was already grasping the idea that pictures were special to us. I showed him the one of Hyuuga and I when we were around eight or nine.

"It's mama and daddy when we first met." I told him, moving onto the next frame. "And this is papa when he started playing basketball." I pointed to a middle school aged Kiyoshi with Reo, Hayama and Nebuya, it was the first official practice of the team that would go onto be the Uncrowned Kings, minus Hanamiya.

Koichi reached out and jabbed a small finger at the glass, I giggled before moving onto the next picture. "And this is our first picture at Seirin." The day that Riko had agreed to coach us had been sealed with a picture, Hyuuga was still warming up to the idea of being on a team with Kiyoshi but I found his slightly irritated expression adorable, everyone else was smiling which made the entire picture more amusing to me.

There was one last picture, it wasn't the one that Koichi had lovingly stolen from Koganei, it was a picture I barely remember being taken. Hyuuga told me that Kuroko had taken it without being prompted, it was just after I had held Koichi for the first time, Hyuuga and Kiyoshi either side of me, we were all in awe at Koichi's existence and it showed on our faces.

"This was when you were born." I told our son, now nearly eight months old. He wasn't sure what to do, he pressed his face into my neck and made some sort of noise that sounded like laughter.

Kiyoshi and Hyuuga watched fondly as I lifted Koichi in the air with a smile, he shrieked in excitement as he kicked at the air. I laughed as I held him close to me again and then set him on the fluffy rug. He was now starting to crawl properly as opposed to shuffling along the floor, Kiyoshi crouched down and tried to get him to cross the room but Koichi was much more fascinated with the rug. We all ended up sat on the floor with him, trying to get him to crawl more and enjoying how he would smile at us.

"Apparently Koga tried to get him to talk but failed." I told them as Koichi gnawed on his eagle's wing.

"Doesn't surprise me." Kiyoshi hummed. "He was premature after all."

"But he's been growing at a good rate regardless." I sighed, ruffling my son's hair.

Hyuuga shrugged. "He'll talk when he wants to."

"And then we won't be able to shut you up will we?" I cooed at Koichi, he dropped his eagle and giggled, managing to make it into my arms where I tickled him, squealing as I ran my fingers up his sides.

"Do you think he'll be normal about it? Like saying mama or papa?" Kiyoshi mused.

"He's our son. Of course he won't be." I remarked. "Will you eh?"

Koichi gazed up at me with green eyes, I poked his little nose and got another giggle out of him as I sat him up. He looked at both Hyuuga and Kiyoshi in turn before glancing back at me.

"Go on, crawl to papa and daddy." I urged him.

At first he didn't do anything, I figured he wasn't feeling cooperative anymore so left him to it. Kiyoshi smiled at him and held out his hands. "Come to papa~"

"Pa..." Koichi uttered, I nearly laughed at Kiyoshi and Hyuuga's expressions, it was one of the only sounds he could make that sounded vaguely like a word and I was somewhat used to hearing him repeat it.

"Pa-pa." Kiyoshi encouraged. Hyuuga laughed slightly as our son looked around bewildered. "Come on Koichi~"

He made his way over to them, looking at them with wide eyes and a gummy smile. I smiled as Kiyoshi lay down on the rug next to Koichi who then proceeded to crawl onto his arm and stare at Hyuuga. Kiyoshi scoped him up and set him down on top of his chest, chuckling as Koichi giggled. We spent a while like that, our son being the focus of our attention for what seemed like forever before I decided that we really ought to start unpacking the rest of our stuff.

It was early evening when Koichi decided he wanted cuddles from me, having spent most of the day with Kiyoshi, I was pleasantly surprised when he crawled up to the couch and sat on the floor making irritated noises until I picked him up. He grasped at my shirt as he settled in my lap, looking up at me with bright eyes and a beaming smile. Hyuuga had gone out to grab some simple groceries for us and Kiyoshi was taking a shower, it was strange to finally be in our own place but at the same time it felt like it was where we were supposed to be.

"Do you like our new home Koichi?" I cooed, running a hand through his fine hair. He smiled as I took his tiny hands in mine and kissed them. "It's just you, mama, daddy and papa now."

"Pa." He mumbled, wriggling in my grasp and falling against my chest which had mostly gone back to looking 'normal' for a guy, even if I still had to wear a sports bra some days.

"Yeah, papa." I repeated, tickling his chin and getting a giggle out of him. "You have papa's hair, and daddy's eyes...not sure what part of mama you have yet."

"He's got your smile." Kiyoshi remarked as he walked out into the lounge, shirtless and fresh from the shower. "Haven't you? You've got mama's smile."

Koichi buried his face in my shirt, I hugged him close as I tilted my head back and found Kiyoshi's lips pressing against mine. I smiled at him as he slowly pulled away, he poked my nose playfully before going to get dressed properly, my attention turned back to Koichi in my lap.

"We love you Koichi." I told him as I kissed his forehead. "No matter what, mama will always love you."

"Ma..." He uttered, watching me with a mixture of curiosity and glee.

"Mama." I repeated in hope he'd say it.

He reached up and placed his hand on my cheek, probably something he had seen Hyuuga and Kiyoshi do enough times to mimic it. It would be interesting to see how much more of our behaviour he picked up on as the months went on, hopefully he wouldn't totally latch onto Hyuuga's temper or my sometimes unstable emotional state. I briefly wondered how amusing it would be if he followed in my family's footsteps of loving puns.

"Ma." He murmured, trying to stand up on his shaky legs, he was only just starting to crawl so I doubted he'd be walking anytime soon, but I still helped him up and held onto him so he didn't topple off my lap and onto the floor.

"Yes Koichi?" I replied. "Can you say mama?"

His fingers closed around my necklace, I rolled my eyes slightly as he tugged on it, kissing his forehead again before hugging him. He giggled in my hold, wrapping his chubby little arms around my neck as best he could.

"Daddy will be home soon, and then we can give you a bath and you can sleep in your brand new bed~"

He showed some kind of understanding, probably the word 'daddy' was the only one he made a connection with, as he wriggled in my arms. I laughed as I picked him up and held him in the air above my head, he shrieked and smiled at me, not noticing that Kiyoshi had walked back into the room until he was plucked from my grasp. Koichi shrieked again as Kiyoshi chuckled and tickled him, sitting next to me on the couch with our son in his arms.

"Someone's very vocal today huh?" Kiyoshi remarked. I was about to reply when we heard the front door open, Hyuuga called out in greeting, I bolted off the couch and met him in our small hallway, pulling him in for a kiss.

"Uh...hi." He breathed when I pulled away with a giggle. "Did I miss something?"

I bit my lip as I waited for him to slip his shoes off. "No, this is just the first time I've been able to welcome you home."

He smiled, ruffling my hair as he held up the small bag from the grocery store. "So it has nothing to do with me buying you coffee jelly?"

I laughed as I hugged him, he tilted my face up and kissed me softly before I released him. We put away the few groceries he had bought, Kiyoshi carried Koichi into the kitchen area and Hyuuga pretended to be startled when they 'snuck up' on him. Koichi was all smiles and laughter as I fixed us a simple curry to eat, he was the centre of both his dad's attention, getting tickled and cuddled by both of them as they continued trying to get him to say his first word.

Just as I was serving up the curry, Hyuuga prepared a bottle for Koichi, stealing a small bowl of rice from the cooker. I didn't think much of it as I placed a bowl on the counter in front of Kiyoshi who was trying to keep Koichi from wriggling off his lap. The two of us ate as we watched Hyuuga offering Koichi his first taste of rice, our son looked neither amazed or disgusted at the food so we declared it a victory.

"Right, you need a bath so daddy can eat in peace." I told Koichi as I picked him up. He kicked the air in defiance and made a small noise of disagreement. "Don't get all grumpy with me young man."

Kiyoshi tried to hide his laughter at my tone, Hyuuga chuckled into his curry as I shot them both an unimpressed glance. Koichi picked up on this and decided that he was going to kick me in the chest to prove his point. I got him into the bathroom and started filling up the tub, he still wasn't overly happy at being here but was getting over it as I took my shirt off. I figured that he'd probably get me soaked by splashing everywhere anyway so being shirtless would spare me the horrid feeling of having a damp shirt.

Once I had gotten him into the bath, he was all smiles and laughter again. I sighed as he hit the water with a giggle, clearly having more fun than I was. I spent a while sat by the bathtub talking to him as he splashed about with his rubber duck, I noticed how quickly he seemed to tire though and got on with washing him before bundling him into a towel.

"Do I have a sleepy Koichi now instead of a grumpy one?" I asked softly, kissing his forehead as I let the water drain. "Does sleepy Koichi want to cuddle with papa or daddy?"

He wrinkled his nose slightly. "Mam..." He mumbled as I carried him through the lounge, neither of my lovers seemed to be around until I walked into Koichi's room. The lights gave off a soft glow as Kiyoshi helped me dress him in a onesie, peppering him with kisses until Hyuuga picked him up and held him close.

"He's adorable isn't he?" I hummed as I rested my head on Kiyoshi's shoulder.

"Just like you."

"Oh god that was cheesy." I sighed.

Hyuuga chuckled at the two of us, gently rocking Koichi until he was nearly asleep, he kissed Koichi's cheek before letting both Kiyoshi and I kiss him. He then slowly set our son down in his bed, having raised the safety bar so he wouldn't roll out during the night. I made sure he had his stuffed eagle with him, gently stroking his cheek as his eyes closed.

"Goodnight Koichi, mama loves you." I told him. "And so does daddy and papa."

He stirred slightly as I took my hand away. "Mama..."

I froze, a smile on my face as I glanced at the others, they shared my smile as Kiyoshi pulled me into a hug and kissed my cheek. We watched our son sleep for a few moments before quietly leaving, keeping the door open a little bit and making sure to turn the nightlight on. I stole once last glance at Koichi sleeping soundly with no idea how much joy he had bought us, before joining my boyfriends on the couch for some much needed cuddling.


	29. The time of our lives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prepare for feels.
> 
> So this was fun to write. 
> 
> I totally didn't cry at all.
> 
> Title inspired by the song I had on repeat the entire time whilst writing this chapter: Time of our lives - Tyrone Wells

 

Going back to school full time was harder than I thought. Sure, I had started back part time when the new school year began, but September was a different ball-game. For a start, Koichi was spending more time with his various extended family whilst we were all at school. I always felt slightly guilty leaving him for so long but in a way we both needed it; me to finish the year with good grades and him to become more independent. Practice was something I was more than happy to get back to, it felt like coming home in a way. Taking those first steps back onto the court reminded me of all the hours we had put into our basketball, the sweat and the tears that we had shed in both victory and defeat, and occasionally the blood smeared on our jerseys from split lips and other minor injuries.

"Nice to see you back." Furihata greeted me. I had noticed how his confidence had grown over the past few months, both down to being the first choice point guard and from dating Akashi.

"It's nice to be back." I smiled. "How are the freshmen suiting up?"

He ran through each of the new players we had gained in my absence, I had met quite a few of them between team meetings and the odd out of school training session but there were a few unfamiliar faces. They seemed to know who I was though, well most of them.

"Who's this senpai?" One of them asked as Furihata finished telling me how there were two first years vying for shooting guard position.

" _This_ \--" He sighed, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "Is Shun Izuki. Only the best damn point guard around right not."

"Furi I'm not--" I tried to interrupt.

"This guy took on Akashi's Emperor Eye and won, whilst he was one month away from having a baby."

I rolled my eyes. "Okay, where's Riko? I need to ask her something." I asked, trying to divert the attention away from my apparent achievements.

The first years didn't seem to know how to react, I didn't believe that they hadn't heard of our Winter Cup victory but it was possible that they didn't quite hear about my condition at the time, Riko had done a decent job of covering it up as much as possible. I spotted our coach talking to Kuroko and Koganei, making a quick getaway from Furihata's praise. His heart was in the right place, I just didn't really like my legacy being that I played an entire tournament whilst pregnant, all I wanted was to play basketball with my friends and have fun.

"Sup?" Riko smiled. "Nice to see you back Shun."

"Any idea where Junpei and Teppei are?" I asked.

She smiled slightly. "They'll be along...later. I'm under strict orders - or rather request because like hell am I taking orders from the likes of them - to keep you here and whip you back into shape in time for the Winter Cup."

If I didn't know any better, I would swear that my mates were up to something. Normally they never left me alone, always one of them would be around so for both of them to be off somewhere without me was very strange. I shrugged, putting it to the back of my mind as Koganei tossed a ball to me to see if I could still react fast enough.

Riko put us through our paces, the regular drills and exercises to get us warmed up before she pitted the third years against the first years; the second years split between the two teams as bench-warmers. It was purely by chance - or that's what we were meant to believe - that I ended up going head-to-head with Furihata. He smiled at me before trying to steal the ball from my possession, I tossed it to Tsuchida in the blink of an eye and smiled back.

"You forgot didn't you?" I asked.

"I guess I did." He replied, his confidence clear in his voice.

"Well you'll have to remember, going up against Takao's Hawk Eye will be harder if you don't win against me."

We went back and forth like that. It was clear that Akashi had given him some training over the summer as he was definitely more confident in himself. I counted myself lucky that he didn't possess the same ability of his boyfriend. For the most part I came out on top of our one-on-one challenges, I wasn't without fault though so it was only a matter of time before he scored a few baskets. The rest of the underclassmen were a little rough around the edges; lacking the teamwork that Riko would drum into them over time, and even I could see some problem areas with their shooting styles and defence tactics.

"You did well." Tsuchida told me as Riko declared the match was over. "You still got it."

"Thanks." I breathed, accepting the water bottle from Kuroko.

Whilst we got our breath back, Riko decided that now was the perfect time to do the start of the year briefing. She recounted how we beat all the other teams last year, the clear mistakes that we made, the good points as well as the bad. She then went into detail about a training camp just before the Winter Cup preliminaries - Seirin already had a place in the Winter Cup as reigning champions so we didn't have to compete - and how the team roster for the games would be announced after that.

"Now, obviously this is the last year for our third years. Myself included." She stated, folding her arms across her chest. "It's going to be a bitter-sweet competition, on the one hand we're looking to defend our title but on the other, it'll be the last time they will play together officially. It will also be the last tournament that Hyuuga is captain so the two of us will be on the lookout for his successor."

"What about the vice-captain? Can't he step up?"

I swallowed, the naive first years assumed that the vice was an underclassmen of Hyuuga's. I wanted to both laugh and cry.

"It's Izuki's last year too." Riko stated. "So we'll be looking for his successor too. I will be looking to continue coaching the team beyond the Winter Cup so you'll still have me, and of course the current second years will be here..."

I tuned out of the rest of her talk. It really was ending, our time at Seirin was coming to a close day by day. I excused myself to go and take a breather, knowing that someone would no doubt find me if they needed me. I just needed some time to myself. The locker room was empty, as it should've been, so I took a moment to reminisce on our time here; how Kiyoshi had fought tooth and nail to get Hyuuga to join the club and then become captain, how we each stood on the roof and declared that we'd become the best in Japan, how even after soul-crushing defeat Hyuuga had been the one to raise our spirits and soldier on. I couldn't imagine team Seirin without him as captain.

It wasn't that I wasn't leaving too, but this was still making my chest ache. I couldn't imagine what the seconds years were feeling, even with their new found confidence our departure will leave a hole in the team. I thought about how if the walls could talk what they would be able to tell me. The jokes banded back and forth, the cheers of victory and sobs of defeat, the puns and their inevitable backlash, the laughter and pranks that we played on Kagami. Of course to me there was more to it than that. This was the room where it all began, it hadn't been the prettiest of starts sure, we had overcome a fair few mountains in the past year but this was where it all started.

"Shun?" A small voice called from the door. I glanced over my shoulder from where I had been staring into space, it was Furihata.

"Yeah?" I replied, hastily wiping away the tears that threatened to fall.

"Are you okay?"

"Just...thinking." I shrugged. "This room has meant a lot to me and...the guys. Is coach wrapping up practice now?"

He shook his head as he stepped into the room and let the door close quietly. "I just wanted to make sure you're okay."

I gave him a weak smile. "You know, I think you have it in you to be a good captain Furi."

"C-Captain? You think I'd be able to be like Hyuuga?"

"Oh god no. No, one Hyuuga is more than enough, we already have a hybrid of him, Kiyoshi and me." I smiled. "No what I meant was, you have the natural caring side that captain's need. You're always striving to be the best, you've got courage, you encourage everyone else, you put yourself on the line before letting someone else take the fall." I listed off. "You see, Kagami's too reckless to be captain, Kuroko's got the strategic mindset but he lacks the presence on court...kind of the point of being the phantom player y'know?"

"S-So you think I should be..." He murmured. "But I can't just take the lead overnight!"

I placed a hand on his shoulder. "You won't have to, Hyuuga would probably ease you into it after the Winter Cup, but come inter-high you'd be expected to take the lead. To take Seirin to the tournament and come home with your head held high regardless of the outcome."

"Even if we lose?"

"Do you remember when we lost, how he refused to let anyone wallow in self-pity? How he kept telling us that we did our best, that we should be proud for getting that far?"

He nodded.

"That's what you do when you lose. Not 'if'. _When_. It's foolish to think you're unbeatable, just look at Aomine, heck even Akashi could probably tell you more about that then I ever could." I knew I was rambling but I felt that as vice-captain I needed to prepare and reassure Furihata that he was probably the most tipped to take over from Hyuuga. "Look, if you take anything away from this it's that no-one's unbeatable. There's always a way, you just have to trust the guys stood on that court with you and think outside the box. Fight for it Furi, fight and win."

He smiled, stepping forward and hugging me. I held onto him as I tried to fight back tears, it felt strange to be talking like this when we still had four months left. He pulled away and wiped his eyes, offering me a bright smile.

"Thanks senpai. I-I'll do my best." He bowed and left me alone in the room again. I sighed heavily, crossing my arms across my chest as I paced the room.

"Senpai." I whispered, half laughing at the word. "Not for much longer."

My phone buzzed in my locker, I lazily checked it to find a text from Hyuuga, apparently his father wanted him down at the store asap so Kiyoshi would pick up Koichi for me and meet me at home. So much for them being along 'later'. I replied with a simple one liner and decided that I needed to get back out onto the court, I was still the vice-captain after all.

 

\---

 

"That'll do for today then. Have some more water and hit the showers guys." Riko declared. I waited until it was just me and her in the empty hall before approaching her. "What's up then?" She asked before I could say anything.

"...is it that obvious?" I replied with a small laugh.

"Please, you forget that I've known you for nearly three years." She smiled, holding the clipboard to her chest. "Is it the whole 'final year' thing?"

I nodded. "I just...this has been our lives for three years, well more than that for me. I don't want it to end so soon." I murmured. "Sure, I have other things to focus on like grades, Koichi, life after graduation..."

"But this has been your escape for so long? You don't want to lose the feeling of leaving everything at the door and just living and breathing basketball. To play the game you love with those closest to you." She summarised. "I know."

"Some people think it's a dumb sport, that it's just about winning and losing but it's more than that. It's the friendships, the bonds, the hours of practice, the cramming for exams that you didn't study for because you were too busy perfecting three-pointers, the constantly taping up joints to stop them failing mid-game, the nights of memorising plays and tactics to use the next day..." I rambled, running my hands through my hair. My chest was tight as I tried to keep myself calm.

"Three years Riko..." I uttered. "I don't want to forget the smiles, the laughter, the feeling of pride whenever I wear the jersey."

She didn't say anything, I wasn't sure if it was because she felt the same or whether she knew that nothing she could say would make me feel better about all this.

"You still have the Winter Cup." She eventually stated, her own voice wavering. "So don't get all emotional on me now. I'll have my hands full with Hyuuga having his existential crisis probably so I need you to help me slap some sense into him."

I smiled weakly. "Yeah..."

"And you have Koichi. I'm not saying he's going to fill the void that Seirin will leave but he'll keep you busy for a few years yet. Besides, if I know you third years, you'll figure out a way to keep the game alive between you."

She was right. The likes of Koganei and Hyuuga will keep wanting to play, Kiyoshi and Mitobe would oblige, Tsuchida would probably stick to refereeing the encounters and I'd end up playfully scolding Hyuuga for trying to teach Koichi bad habits.

"Anyway, there's a reason that Junpei and Teppei weren't around today." She smiled.

"Junpei's dad needed him to work--"

"Nope." She cut me off. "That was just to throw you off."

"Oh god what are they up to this time?" I groaned, laughing slightly.

The doors to the gym opened, I shot the team a puzzled look, even more so when Koganei bounded over and put an arm around my shoulders. Riko seemed to be in on it as she smiled at me, I was starting to think that they all knew something I didn't.

"What's going on?" I asked Koganei.

"You'll see." He beamed at me, nodding towards the door. I followed his gaze and saw Kiyoshi and Hyuuga stood there, Koichi in Kiyoshi's arms. Something seemed very...planned about all of this.

I accepted Koichi into my arms when Kiyoshi offered him to me, smiling at both of my lovers as Koichi murmured into my neck.

"And where have you been all practice _Captain_?" I asked with a raised eyebrow, getting a laugh out of the others as Hyuuga went along with my scolding.

"I was busy." He replied eventually.

"Too busy to come to practice?" I challenged, glancing at Kiyoshi. "And you?"

"Same as him."

"Well what were you doing?" I looked between them, noting how they kept exchanging glances.

"Well if you really want to know..." Hyuuga smiled, ruffling my hair.

"Yes I would, and why is everyone just standing around--

Kiyoshi reached into the pocket of his jacket and produced a small black box. My gaze fixed on it as the words got stuck in my throat.

"We both had a long talk about making this more official but we always came to the same conclusion; we didn't want you to have to choose between us." Hyuuga told me. "So I actually asked my mom about it and she came up with this, it's kind of a Western thing but I thought it was a nice idea..."

Kiyoshi opened the box, inside on a white cushion was a single ring. It was a regular gold band for the most part but I could clearly see four distinct gems set into one side of it. Koichi didn't seem to grasp the gravity of the situation as he tried to get my attention. I looked up at Kiyoshi who smiled back, before looking to Hyuuga for more clarity.

"We love you Shun, and we wanted you to have something to signify that." He spoke softly, lifting the ring from the box. "Four birthstones. Emerald for mine, pearl for Teppei's, a blue opal for yours and a red garnet for Koichi's."

"It's an eternity ring." Kiyoshi added. "More than a promise ring but not quite an engagement ring."

"Because we know you love us equally and wouldn't want to pick one over the other for tradition's sake."

I didn't know what to say, how long had they been planning this? How much had they paid for this? Just so that I could have something to signify their love? I blinked quickly, trying to stop any tears from falling as I mouthed 'thank-you' at them and let Hyuuga slip it onto my finger. Koichi was taken from me so I could properly hug them in turn, burying my face in the crook of Kiyoshi's neck as the bottled up tears started falling. He held me close as Hyuuga approached the rest of the team and started talking to them about training for the Winter Cup.

It was obvious that Furihata had taken my words on board as he stuck around after the others were dismissed. He struck up a conversation with Hyuuga about what being captain was, his new found confidence was doing him a world of favours. Kuroko had been holding Koichi, it was nice to see our usually stoic shadow smiling so much as he gave my son back to me. I had a feeling that we would be leaving Seirin in very capable hands after the Winter Cup, Furihata as captain and our ace duo still improving. Heck, if Koganei actually started coaching alongside Riko then Seirin would probably achieve more than I thought we ever could.

"So, shall we head home?" Kiyoshi asked as Furihata and Hyuuga seemed to come to an agreement; a handshake between the two of them meaning much more than a simple farewell for the day.

 

\---

 

"And why didn't we keep on top of this?" I asked as Koichi wriggled on my lap. Kiyoshi chuckled as he flipped through the pages of the scrapbook, the gift from Koganei that we had made an attempt to keep up with as the weeks and moths had passed. It was inevitable really that we'd get overrun with other things so now we were filling in the blanks, many pictures of Koichi both alone and with his host of extended family members.

"Life got in the way?" He replied. "But hey, it's something to do whilst waiting for Junpei to get home."

I laughed, setting Koichi on the floor as I flicked through some of the photos that Kiyoshi had set out to stick in the colourful book. Our son had learnt a few more words in the past few weeks, his favourite being 'no', and he was starting to crawl more and more which was proving both entertaining and terrifying.

"Uh Shun?"

"Hm?"

"Koichi's making a dash for the balcony."

I bolted off the couch and swept up my son before he made it across the threshold of the open door, he giggled as I held him and stepped out into the autumn afternoon. He was starting to get heavier and my hips were starting to feel it.

"Is someone getting bored off the apartment?" I asked him as he gazed at the trees of the local park. "Do you want papa to take you out tomorrow?"

He smiled, a chubby-cheeked grin that melted my heart everytime I saw it. I held him for a while longer on the balcony, it was a fairly warm Saturday so I wasn't worried, the fresh air would probably do him good anyway. When I walked back inside, Kiyoshi had finished sticking the pictures into the book and held out his hands to take Koichi from me.

"Causing mischief as usual? Yeah you're mama's son alright." Kiyoshi remarked, I rolled my eyes and playfully shoved him on my way past to the kitchen area. "Ooh I think mama's gonna make you a snack now~"

I smiled as I listened to Kiyoshi talk to Koichi, my attention focused on the small notepad my mother had left me, her and Kiyoshi's grandmother had complied a list of foods that I could feed Koichi and at what age with tips on how to get him to eat them. Today was the day we'd see if he like egg. At first he turned away from the scrambled egg, I wasn't surprised, it didn't exactly look appetising. Kiyoshi smiled and tasted it, playing up that it was the best thing he'd ever tasted. Whatever went on inside Koichi's head, it seemed to work and he let me spoon the tiniest of spoonfuls into his mouth.

Hyuuga arrived home to find Koichi happily letting me feed him egg.

"Someone's getting spoilt." HE remarked as Koichi wriggled away from me and crawled towards him. Hyuuga picked him up and wiped at his face. "Mucky pup."

Koichi kicked at the air, both Kiyoshi and I laughed as Koichi reached out and took hold of Hyuuga's glasses. Another one of our son's pastimes was to drop Hyuuga's glasses on the floor repeatedly, it was rather amusing but had resulted in one broken pair already.

"He really is his mama's son isn't it?" Hyuuga murmured, taking his glasses back and pocketing them. "I remember when you used to steal my glasses." He nodded towards me.

"Eh? I did not!"

"In middle school you did! The time I slept around at your house and you hide them in your sister's room? Ring any bells?"

"Pft, we were like...thirteen? And that was your fault for--"

Kiyoshi laughed at the two of us. "The point is Koichi's got your mischievous streak."

"Well it'll only get worse with the likes of Takao and Koga as godfathers." I shrugged, starting on washing the dishes. "So what do you guys want for dinner?"

"I'm guessing you're not on the menu?" Kiyoshi hummed.

"Hey, none of that...I'm too tired." I replied, letting him kiss my neck.

He dropped the topic, still lingering beside me as I fixed a simple meal. Hyuuga saw to Koichi's needs and set him down to sleep, it wasn't long before I found myself being carried to bed, apparently too tired to even register that they had both asked if I wanted to sleep.

"I'm sorry." I mumbled as they snuggled up to me.

"Sorry for what?" Hyuuga asked, kissing my hand.

"...being tired all the time." I yawned. "It's been a constant thing."

"Babe...it's fine. You're always running around after us and Koichi. You should let us do more."

"No, you're doing more..." I trailed off, feeling Kiyoshi wrapping an arm around my waist.

"Just let us give you a break Shun...you know what they say right?"

"What?" Hyuuga asked, just as puzzled as I was.

"Sharing is caring." Kiyoshi murmured, kissing my shoulder. "So between the three of us, we'll manage yeah? That's what we said way back when you first found out you were pregnant. We're in it together."

I nodded, slowly drifting to sleep. Hyuuga hummed in agreement as he pulled a blanket over me, kissing my forehead as I clung onto Kiyoshi's arm now wrapped around my chest. They both kissed my cheek before properly fitting themselves around me. I felt safe and loved in the warm embrace of my alphas, my lovers, my family.

 

~Fin~

(Epilogue to follow)


	30. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *sobs*
> 
> Okay. I'll save my feelings for the end of chapter notes so just some actual info about this epilogue;  
> 1\. It's set Four years later.  
> 2\. I included a hell of a lot of characters  
> 3\. Trying to figure out how each individual would mature was hella difficult so I hope I did okay-ish with that.  
> 4\. There have been one or two minor editorial changes in regards to plot holes that I caused when writing follow-up oneshots

 

 

> _And we're all just passengers tonight_  
>  _And we're all just travelling through our lives_

 

"Go and show daddy your picture." I smiled, ruffling Koichi's hair. He giggled and ran through the barber shop with the picture in hand. Hyuuga paused in cutting his client's hair and crouched down to his level, taking the finger-painted picture with a smile.

"Well look at that, my son the artist...I'm gonna frame this and hang it up here in the shop for everyone to see."

Koichi giggled as Hyuuga kissed his forehead. The regular customers to the shop all knew Koichi, it wasn't like he'd pester me to visit Hyuuga every other day, apparently seeing him made a lot of them happy. Seeing Hyuuga smiling at our son made my heart flutter. I watched on as he picked our son up and asked him about his day at pre-school, remarking on how he was growing up quickly. Koichi babbled about a game he played with some of the other kids as Hyuuga nodded and tidied up the client's hair with one hand.

"Okay kiddo, daddy's gotta finish up so you run along. I'll be home later yeah?"

"Yeah." Koichi repeated, Hyuuga kissed his cheek and set him down. He ran over to me and hugged my legs, I smiled at Hyuuga as he laughed.

"Let's get home then." I told my son, offering my hand to him, he took it and waved goodbye to Hyuuga as I tugged him out of the shop. He would hold my hand tightly as he jumped ahead of me a few paces, his mischievous streak was really starting to come out as he got more and more independent, thankfully he seemed to have gotten over his horrendous tantrums for now.

I got him home, Kiyoshi was just putting away from groceries when Koichi bounded in and demanded to be picked up. My lover chuckled, sighing dramatically as he scooped up our son. I finished packing away the food as he tickled Koichi, my mind already on our plans for the evening.

"Did Furi call back?" I asked Kiyoshi.

"Huh? Oh no, Akashi called. He said that they'd be here around seven, it'll depend on traffic though."

I nodded. "And all the others are still--"

"Love, it's okay." He smiled. "It's just a get-together for old time's sake, stop worrying."

I rolled my eyes. The past few years had been a whirlwind and tonight was the first in a weekend of reunions, sure we had all kept in touch and met up frequently with the Seirin team, but some of the others had moved away to university or moved in with partners so we had hardly seen them since we all graduated.

"...so did you get the futons from Nanna?" I asked. "Cause I forgot how many can stay in Kagami's apartment."

"Yes I did." Kiyoshi smiled, handing Koichi back to me. "He should probably settle down for a nap, we have a few more hours before the chaos begins."

 

\---

 

It was pretty much decided that our friends from Seirin would stay in our apartment whilst the miracles stayed with Kagami and Kuroko. That being said, everyone still squeezed into our apartment for the evening of catching up over drinks and snacks. It wasn't as hectic as I thought it would be.

"So Shin-chan told me that he was only going to have a kid with me if we were married first." Takao smiled as he recounted exactly how he came to be engaged - and then married - to Midorima within one summer, it wasn't a surprise at all but it was still something else to see the small ring on his finger. He went on to tell me how his alpha did a lot of 'research' on the best sex positions to ensure conception, I was somewhat thankful I didn't know all of this back when my first heat was happening.

"Sounds like you've got it all planned out..." I remarked with a smile as Koichi was being entertained by Furihata. our  underclassman had gotten married to Akashi the summer after they both graduated - a quiet ceremony in one of the Akashi residences - and now they had their own child; a little girl with Akashi's red hair and Furihata's doe eyes. She was currently being held and cooed over by Momoi, her name was picked out by Furihata; Eri Akashi.

"She's adorable." Momoi told Akashi. He smiled and nodded, he had really mellowed out since settling down, according to Furihata his emperor eye no longer came out at all. It seemed that having their daughter finally allowed him to break free of his other self.

"But you gotta admit, Kise's kid will be something else." Kagami remarked, nudging the blond miracle who was snuggled up against Kasamatsu. The Kaijou captain had been begged and pleaded by his lover to have a baby for so long, he had eventually agreed once Kise assured him that he wouldn't be upset about giving up modelling for a while, it would still be a few more weeks until the world was 'blessed' with that mixture of genetics.

"Kagamicchi!" Kise blushed. "Sh-Shut up."

Kasamatsu rolled his eyes, dealing with Kise had in some ways made him more easily irritated but on the whole he had also mellowed out from his 'no-nonsense' attitude. He ruffled Kise's hair as he shot Kagami an amused look. "And what about your son?"

That shut Kagami up. Him and Kuroko were the first ones from Seirin, after us, to have a baby. It was a close call for them in their third year when Kuroko went into heat and they had forgotten to use protection. Kagami had gone into full panic mode at the idea of jeopardising their final exams over it, Kuroko had taken most of it in his stride in public but had called me a number of times in a very over-emotional state about the whole thing. When they eventually worked up the nerve to check, they were relieved to find out it was a false alarm. A few months after graduation in the heat of the summer, Kuroko's next heat came around and since they were no longer in school they decided that this time they would actually hope to get lucky. Just before Christmas of that year, Tadashi was born.  I had actually been one of Kuroko's birthing partners and held Tadashi just a few hours after he was born, he was small like Koichi had been and his little tufts of blue hair had since grown out to a untameable mop of hair.

"I bet he's got an appetite like yours." Himuro remarked as Tadashi clung to his uncle's neck.

"Not like your son is any different." Kagami retorted, gesturing to the black-haired boy climbing over Murasakibara as the giant lay on his stomach.

"That's your nephew you're referring to." Himuro raised an eyebrow. "Toshio's appetite is perfectly healthy."

"Well there's a surprise."

The light-hearted bickering continued, my attention turned to how Koganei was cooing over his godson. He apparently had no desire to have his own child yet, instead he preferred to babysit Koichi and Tadashi so Kuroko and I could have afternoons off. So far he hadn't taught Koichi any bad habits beyond exactly how to use his puppy eyes to convince Kiyoshi to give him cookies. Although he could've learnt the same skill from Nigou, the 'puppy' who was getting rather too big to be considered a puppy; he was almost a fully grown - in terms of size - husky, still playful and great with kids though. He was almost as good a climbing frame as Murasakibara.

Koichi and Toshio were the closest in age, just over a year apart as Himuro had Toshio just after graduating high school, so they were more than content with playing around each other. Tadashi was the next eldest with Eri being the youngest currently, although that would change when Kise and Kasamatsu's baby was born. We somewhat hoped that we'd all be able to get together a lot more often so our kids could all grow up together, it was wishful thinking really.

"So has anyone actually heard from Aomine?" Kiyoshi asked as Eri was passed to Riko.

"Oh Dai-chan?" Momoi clarified. "Yeah I spoke to him about this actually. He said he'll be along later."

"Has he actually settled down yet?" Kagami turned to Kuroko who was probably the only one of the miracles to still properly talk to Aomine - Akashi effectively stalking the other for a few months during their second year didn't count as 'keeping in contact' according to Furihata - and the other miracles had noticed how Aomine had declined to tell them whether he was seeing anyone when they did manage to catch him between matches.

Kuroko smiled. "Aomine-kun is doing fine."

Everyone regarded Kuroko with a slightly suspicious expression before Eri summoned Akashi's attention with a small noise of irritation. The former captain scooped his precious daughter out of Riko's arms and held her close, it was very obvious that he was protective of her.

"Who wants to send out for pizza?" Hyuuga suggested, met with a chorus of yes's he went to go and find the pamphlet that was mailed to us a few days ago.

Koichi and Toshio had met a few times before but it was really Tadashi that my son felt most comfortable with, having spent almost every weekend with him. It was great to see them all interacting with each other, even if they hadn't quite mastered the art of speaking properly to each other just yet. I couldn't help but laugh as Murasakibara became the climbing frame, he seemed used to it as he lazily opened one eye before shrugging and letting them continue to grab onto his hair and clamber onto his broad shoulders.

"Weird to think that we're all parents eh?" Himuro remarked to me as he caught my eye.

"Speak for yourselves." Takao pouted half-heartedly before nudging Midorima with a coy smile. Midorima sighed and ruffled his hair before leaning down and whispering something that made Takao's cheeks flush red.

"No fucking in our apartment later!" Kagami stated.

"Taiga you shouldn't talk about that in front of the children." Akashi quickly replied.

"They're too young to figure it out."

"Akashi-kun is right though Taiga." Kuroko added. "If Tadashi picks up on your swearing then I won't be happy."

"Ooh Kagami's getting whipped." Takao sniggered, Kise laughed too which caused the kids to all laugh even though they weren't sure what was going on, they just mimicked those around them.

Eri seemed to have inherited Furihata's timidness, when she was set down next to the others she immediately tried to wriggled back into Akashi's arms. He smiled and stroked her hair before Tadashi crawled over, giving her a somewhat stoic stare before a grin that could only be inherited from Kagami spread across his cheeks. Koichi and Toshio were still using Murasakibara as a climbing frame when Hyuuga sat next to me, telling us that the pizza would be here soon.

 

\---

 

"Mama..." Koichi pestered me as I tried to eat my slice of pizza.

"What is it little man?" I asked, ruffling his hair.

He buried his face in my neck, mumbling something. "Go and cuddle aunt Riko." I told him, gently ushering to our female friend. She smiled as he fell into her arms, Momoi giggled as she offered him one of the potato wedges that had come with the pizzas. It was no secret that Koichi was spoilt by everyone, heck all of our kids were spoilt by us. I vaguely knew that we'd have to start putting our foot down and being more stubborn with him - something that apparently I was very good at despite being his 'mother'.

Himuro was laying in Murasakibara's hold as Toshio slowly fell asleep on his chest, Tadashi was sat in Kuroko's lap as Kagami lazily poked his nose to make him giggle. Kise was actually asleep cuddled up to Kasamatsu - not that any of us blamed him - and Takao was telling us another story about how Midorima bought five different flavours of pocky once because Oha asa told him that it was his lucky item but never told him which flavour. Eri was fast asleep in Furihata's arms as Akashi quietly helped Mitobe and Kiyoshi clear up the pizza boxes, I let Hyuuga pull me onto his lap as I watched Koichi clinging to Riko and getting forehead kisses from Momoi.

The knock at the door was unexpected to say the least. Kiyoshi answered it to find Aomine stood there with Sakurai. I hadn't even seen the two of them since the last match Seirin played against Touou so it was surprising that they even knew where to find us.

"Better late than never." Akashi sighed.

Sakurai didn't seem nearly as jumpy as he did when I last saw him, he actually seemed pretty confident and reminded me of Furihata. Kise had awoken at the sound of Aomine's voice, shooting his friend a confused expression before his eyes settled on Sakurai.

"Aominecchi you didn't tell me it was Sakurai." He said, gaining a lot of confused looks from everyone except Kuroko.

"Well why would I? Everyone would assume the worst about me." Aomine grumbled, ruffling Sakurai's hair. I gestured for the brunet to sit down and he smiled. Kagami immediately asked what the heck Kise was talking about so Aomine had to explain.  "Basically Ryou approached me after our loss at the Winter cup and asked if I wanted someone to talk to about everything that had happened."

I raised an eyebrow as he went on to explain that watching us beat Rakuzan had left him feeling like he had failed as Kuroko's teammate and unofficial alpha. He was beating himself up about it when Sakurai approached him one afternoon after Imayoshi's departure from the club and asked if he wanted someone to talk to. At first he had blown Sakurai off but the shooting guard of Touou had some courage in him to demand that Aomine let him in. They started hanging out and - in Aomine's words - they got to the point where they both went 'fuck it' and ended up getting together.

"In a way he saved me from ending up like Akashi." Aomine sighed, having sat next to Sakurai during his explanation. "I mean, we both admit there's a lot of grey areas in our...uh...relationship but we're working on it. Which is why I didn't tell any of you, I didn't want you thinking I pressured him into it or shit like that. I was gonna tell you when we figured it out some more but--"

"Say no more." Akashi interrupted with a small smile. "We get it."

Aomine returned the smile, taking Sakurai's hand in his and giving his partner a fonder smile. "Told you they'd be fine with it."

Sakurai laughed nervously, his eyes scanning the scene before him as he looked at me. "So, you've all been busy." He murmured as Momoi and Kise got Aomine caught up on everyone's lives.

"Yeah. Koichi's four now." I smiled. "And you?"

He nodded, smile growing along with the warmth in his eyes that I was used to seeing anxiety in. "Yeah. Daiki and I...we're good. It's weird to think I was scared of him in our first year." He laughed. "Now it's quite the opposite."

I didn't see the need to poke further into it, the most reckless member of the miracles had finally settled down it seemed. Koichi started getting cranky so I took him into his room, Koganei at my heels. We both sorted him out for bed before pulling out the spare futons so we wouldn't have to disturb him later when it was time to sleep. He fell asleep easily and I stroked his head just before leaving the room quietly. After some quick maths, it was concluded that there was no way Kagami and Kuroko's apartment could hold all the miracles and their partners.

"Mitobe and I will head home in that case." Koganei declared. "That'll free up a futon right?"

"If you're sure?" Hyuuga replied. "You don't have to."

Mitobe made some obscure gesture to Koganei who nodded. "Rin-chan said that he's got work tomorrow anyway so we should probably get some sleep."

I smiled as they both hugged Kiyoshi and Hyuuga before bidding farewell to the others, I saw them out after Koganei hugged me tightly and said he'd see me next week for the usual godfather slot. I laughed and nodded. In my brief absence, it had been decided that Takao and Midorima, Aomine and Sakurai and Furihata, Akashi and Eri would stay with us whilst the others would all go back to Kagami and Kuroko's. Momoi took charge of looking after the sleepy kids with Sakurai as everyone else got involved in shifting furniture around to make the three spare futons fit in our lounge area. It was rather amusing in a way because no-one wanted to wake up Koichi so there was a lot of hushed bickering between Takao and Kagami about how to shift the couch, Akashi sighing and making side comments to Midorima and actually getting a laugh out of the other, Aomine and Kasamatsu sharing a glance of amusement as Kise was forbidden to try and help not because of his condition but because he 'would just make things worse' as Kagami bluntly put it.

Kiyoshi eventually waded in and sorted out the arrangements, preventing another miracle fallout just in time for Toshio to start getting cranky and demanding his daddy read him a bedtime story. Murasakibara hummed slightly before picking up his son and holding him close, Kagami took it as a hint and ushered everyone who was staying with him and Kuroko out of our apartment.

Eri was a quiet toddler, she regarded me with wide eyes as I held her whilst waiting for Furihata to get changed. Akashi was helping Kiyoshi and Sakurai make hot chocolate for those left in our lounge as Takao gazed out at the balcony where Midorima and Aomine were in a deep conversation about something. Hyuuga kissed my forehead as he passed on the way to dump more blankets on the coffee-table, I was thankful we had so many spares given to us now.

When we were all seated again, it was only around half eleven, drinking hot chocolate in the dim lighting. Eri had fallen asleep again and Akashi was stroking her red hair fondly. I caught Sakurai watching as Aomine and Takao started reminiscing about their high school captains. 

"You actually heard from Imayoshi?" Midorima asked, stirring the hot drink in his mug. "I've heard some...things."

"He's with that asshole Hanamiya that's all we know." Hyuuga replied, wrapping an arm around my waist.

Sakurai seemed to snap back to reality. "They have a daughter." He told us. Kiyoshi nearly choked on his hot chocolate, I gave Sakurai a disbelieving look which made him raise an eyebrow. "She's around the same age as...um...Toshio?"

"A year younger than Koichi." I concluded. "So he got Hanamiya pregnant the year he graduated."

Takao and Furihata exchanged glances, Akashi seemed to not have an opinion on the subject as he regarded Aomine with a small smile.

"I dunno what he did to you," Aomine murmured, catching my eye. "but he's actually kinda matured. He's still kind of devious and Hanamiya's not much better but it's been four years now. He's changed."

I swallowed. "Well that doesn't mean I have to meet him anytime soon." I shrugged. "But I'll take your word for it..."

The conversation turned to lighter topics before Akashi declared that his old team-mates would be in town tomorrow and that Reo had been talking about dropping by to see us. It was an excuse to get out of the apartment for a few hours and see some of Kiyoshi's old friends so I said we'd love to see the other Rakuzan players. Takao volunteered to look after the apartment if we happened to leave before they all woke up, Kiyoshi and Hyuuga took a bit more convincing but they eventually agreed to trust Takao with our only spare key.

 

\---

 

It was a surprisingly warm day for April, the cherry blossoms were in full bloom as we hung out at an outdoor court. Hayama wanted to see if I could take him on one-on-one for the first time since we both graduated, I accepted his challenge as the other's sat on the sidelines watching intently. Koichi always got very vocal when he saw one of his parents playing basketball, it seemed that Hayama's kids were no different.

"Still can't believe you had twins." I remarked with a smile.

He shrugged. "You should've seen Reo-nee's face when we told him." He laughed, swiping the ball from me and trying to get past me, I blocked him and forced him to rethink his play. "He nearly fainted, Mayu had to hold him up."

"So how old are they? Two?"

"Same age as Tadashi yeah. Akashi's not stopped keeping us up to date with your pack's new additions."

"I'd hardly call the miracles part of 'my pack'." I snorted. "Akashi yeah, but that's because he's with Furihata."

He shook his head. "Your pack is bigger than you think. You've had a big effect on us all Izuki."

We went back and forth for a while, despite the lack of practice over the past few months we were more or less evenly matched. He high-fived me with a grin as we returned to the others, Koichi smiled and wriggled out of Kiyoshi's hold to run into my arms. Hayama laughed as he found his legs being hugged by his son and daughter; two very loud and excitable toddlers with bright blond hair.

"Eikichi are you gonna challenge Teppei like you said you would?" Hayama smirked, picking up his son Hitoshi as his daughter Keiko ran back to Nebuya, the twins' skin tone a shade between Nebuya's and Hayama's.

Kiyoshi raised an eyebrow at his old team mate, Reo sighed loudly between us as Keiko ran in his arm chanting 'aunt Reo' excitedly.

"Calm down hun." Reo smiled, stroking the golden locks of the toddler as he glanced at Mayuzumi. Rakuzan's former phantom player was still reclusive but with his own daughter inheriting the same reserved attitude, he had become more talkative. He didn't scowl as much when he was around other people anyway.

"Do they actually get along?" I asked Reo, gesturing to the small girl on Mayu's lap named Hoshi, her bright purple eyes framed by jet black hair. "Her and the twins?"

"Hm? Oh yeah, she's very quiet like a certain someone else." He smiled. "But like Hayama, the twins bring her out of her shell."

Kiyoshi and Nebuya eventually agreed to have a one-on-one. Hyuuga watched with amusement as Koichi and Hitoshi both got very vocal about their papa's playing basketball. Furihata was much more interested in making sure Eri didn't try to eat any of the cherry blossom petals that had fallen near her, Akashi and Mayuzumi seemed to actually bond over both of them having daughters, even if they had a slightly petty argument over who's was cuter. Reo had his arms full with Keiko as he told me what each of the Uncrowned Kings had been up to since graduating.

I couldn't help myself asking about Hanamiya.

"Oh? Yeah Kou-chan ran into him a few days ago actually. Apparently his daughter is rather adorable."

"I mean, Aomine said that both Imayoshi and Hanamiya have 'changed'. So do you know if they have or not?"

Reo thought for a few moments. "From what I've heard, Imayoshi has dropped his shadow king act. Mako-chan I'm not sure of, Kou-chan reckons he's become fiercely protective of his daughter but at the same time...it's weird to think of him being anything but like how he was in high-school." He replied, poking Keiko's nose playfully. "Why do you ask?"

I glanced over at Kiyoshi and Nebuya laughing loudly as they played one another. "I guess I'm still trying to rationalise how they could even make a relationship work."

Reo smiled as I glanced back at him. Mayuzumi snorted and caught my attention. "Well, they're both a bit screwed in the head so is it that much of a surprise?"

"Chi-chan don't be rude!" Reo scolded as Hoshi giggled at Mayuzumi's childish response of sticking his tongue out at Reo.

Akashi laughed, I didn't recall ever hearing him laugh that loudly, before he rested a hand on my shoulder. "Well regardless, unless you really want to track them down and see for yourself, I'd just stick with what Aomine told you Izuki."

"I guess it'll keep eating away at me then." I murmured. Furihata passed Eri to me with a smile.

"Would it really be that bad of an idea to see them? I know both you and Kiyoshi have history with them so it could be awkward but as Aomine said; it's been four years, don't you think it's time to bury the ordeal?" He asked.

I shrugged. "It would be digging up a load of past problems."

Reo and Akashi shared a glance. "Well I still have Mako-chan's number, I could see if they're busy and have them drop by? I'll tell them it's just an Uncrowned King thing, I won't mention you're here."

I held Reo's gaze for a few moments. I knew that they wouldn't dare to try and pull anything with everyone else here, but was it worth dragging up the past just for the chance that maybe they've both become semi-decent people? Just on Aomine's words, on Hayama's assumption?

"...go for it." I replied. "But don't make it seem like a big deal."

Reo nodded, passing Keiko to Akashi as he set about texting his old team-mate.

 

\---

 

"You did what?" Kiyoshi asked when Reo announced that Hanamiya and Imayoshi were going to drop by. "Why?"

"I asked him to." I replied. "I need to see for myself if they've really changed like Aomine claims."

Hyuuga shook his head, exchanging a glance with Nebuya who just shrugged. Kiyoshi sighed heavily and ruffled my hair as he sat down next to me, Koichi was oblivious to just what was about to happen as he babbled away to Hoshi.

"...are you sure about this?" Kiyoshi whispered, kissing my cheek.

"Aren't you curious if they've matured?" I challenged. "Hanamiya was your team-mate too."

"...I know. Which is why I don't...I'd rather not see him."

I nodded, given the history between him and Hanamiya I wasn't surprised that he didn't want to be around. "Well if you want to head back and see if our apartment is in one piece, I won't hold it against you."

He shook his head. "I'm staying."

We didn't have to wait long for the last member of the Uncrowned Kings to arrive, his alpha raising an eyebrow as he noticed that there were more of us here than expected. I wasn't sure what to feel when I saw the little girl clinging to Imayoshi's hand with long black hair and dark green eyes.

"Sup?" Hanamiya greeted Reo, his gaze flickered around the group before his eyes fixed on me. "Oh, it's been a while hasn't it?"

"Yeah." Kiyoshi replied, tilting his head as he looked between Hanamiya and Imayoshi. "A while."

Reo cleared his throat and gestured for the two of them to sit down, their daughter smiled as she babbled to Koichi, I wasn't sure whether to shield my son from her or not.

"Her name's Mizuki." Imayoshi told me as Reo interrogated Hanamiya on why he never answered his phone until today. I nodded at Imayoshi, before gesturing to my son.

"Koichi."

He smiled, it was a far cry from the unsettling smirk he used to wear, it was a genuine smile. "I know you're probably apprehensive Izuki, I don't blame you. But I'd like to think we can put it behind us. We've both moved on and got more important things to be focusing on."

I wasn't sure if this was some elaborate ploy of his. "You never apologised for what you did." I stated, fixing Koichi's slightly messed up hair.

He sighed slightly. "I know. Would it make you feel better if I did?"

"Not unless to actually meant it."

Hyuuga had wrapped an arm around my waist as Kiyoshi silently listened to everything Imayoshi said. The former Touou captain adjusted his glasses as he regarded me with a calm expression. "Okay. Izuki, I'm sorry for my error of judgement back in high-school. I was an asshole and...well."

I raised an eyebrow. "Well what?"

"Well, I was wrong." He ran a hand through his hair. "I could blame it on being a new alpha and just wanting an omega so badly but...the end of it is that I was wrong to put you through that. I'm sorry Izuki. I'm not expecting you to completely forgive me right this second but I hope that we can at least look past that afternoon's events."

Hanamiya hadn't said anything, I expecting him to interrupt with a sarcastic comment for something but he just nodded. Imayoshi was right to not expect me to forgive him immediately but I did appreciate the sentiment. Koichi and Mizuki actually seemed to get along rather well, I was still unsure if this was good thing or not.

"Whilst we're all busy getting emotional." Hanamiya sighed, leaning his head on Imayoshi's shoulder. "Is it worth me saying I do somewhat regret busting your knee in that one match Teppei?"

"Somewhat?" Kiyoshi uttered, a sarcastic laugh escaping him. "I can believe him showing remorse but you? Nah."

Hanamiya smirked. "A leopard can't change its spots."

"You could _try_ though." Imayoshi poked Hanamiya's forehead.

"Easy for you to say." He muttered. "You've always been the softer one."

"Have not."

Hanamiya pouted slightly before laughing. It was strange to see the two of them actually bickering light-heartedly in a similar way to how Kiyoshi and Hyuuga do. Even if we didn't totally believe that they had well and truly 'changed', it had been a number of years since it all happened. We were all older and wiser - some more than others - so it was a question of whether we should let the errors of our youth affect our present.

"So..." Hayama murmured as an uneasy silence fell. "Who wants to go one-on-one?"

It broke the tension, Hyuuga declared he was bored and ended up challenging Imayoshi to a shoot-out. Akashi and Mayuzumi decided to go and get some food for everyone, recruiting Hayama to their cause as well. Nebuya started talking about how the twins ran rings around him, gaining laughs out of Furihata and Hanamiya. A few remarks went back and forth about how the gorilla now had two little monkeys to look after. I was caught up in his story-telling so I didn't notice until Kiyoshi nudged me, Koichi had been strangely quiet since Mizuki had sat next to him, we watched as our son regarded the girl next to him for a few moments before clumsily - but slowly - brushing her jet black hair over her shoulder with a smile.

Hanamiya raised an eyebrow. "Well, I guess we better get used to seeing each other more often." He remarked with a slight smirk.

Kiyoshi didn't say anything at first, watching as Mizuki then hugged Koichi. "I suppose so." He grumbled into my shoulder.

Reo and Furihata shared an amused smile as Nebuya was subjected to the twins' excitable chattering. Koichi smiled at me and Kiyoshi as Mizuki let go of him and toddled into Hanamiya's lap. I accepted my son into my arms as he giggled.

"What's so funny?" I asked him.

"I like her." He told me with a beaming smile. "Mama can she come and play at our house?"

Kiyoshi was so done. Hanamiya laughed as I tried not to appear dumbstruck by my son's response. "I-uh, you better ask daddy." I quickly replied. "And he'll talk to her daddy."

I glanced over my shoulder to find Hyuuga and Imayoshi appearing to have a civil conversation, the basketball at their feet as both former captains kept talking. "C-Can Toshio come too!" Koichi nearly yelled in my ear.

"Maybe?" I replied, trying to mimic his enthusiasm for the idea. "We'll have to ask Himuro."

"And Tadashi?"

It went on like that, he listed off pretty much everyone's kid and I kept saying we'd have to ask all our friends first. I couldn't be mad at his enthusiasm for playing with other kids, it made me happy that he was already set on making friends. When Hyuuga and Imayoshi did return, my lover kissed my cheek and listened to Koichi babbling about this playdate with Mizuki.

"Oh yeah? What do you say Imayoshi?" Hyuuga replied, ruffling Koichi's hair.

"Hm? A playdate?" The other replied, picking Mizuki from Hanamiya's lap. "Do you wanna go to Koichi's house?" He asked her, she smiled shyly and buried her face in his neck.

It was pretty much decided that we'd host this playdate in the next two weeks, we'd have to fully convince the others that we trusted Imayoshi and Hanamiya - even if I was still slightly sceptical - but Hyuuga seemed at ease with the idea. Akashi and the others returned with some Maji burger takeout, complete with kids meals. Whatever tension was still in the air quickly eased with the introduction of food.

I managed to let myself relax as the day went on, the more time we spent with both of them the more I was coming around to the idea that they had grown up considerably. I was curious as to what was said between Imayoshi and Hyuuga but I would keep quiet until later, if he was at ease with our old rival then I could give him the benefit of a doubt for now.

A text from Takao spurred us to get home, apparently everyone had ended up in our apartment again and no-one wanted to raid our kitchen for food without us being there. Imayoshi pressed a scrap of paper into Hyuuga's hand with a nod and that genuine smile that oddly suited him. I got Koichi to say goodbye to the others, he was a little upset at having to leave his new friends but I promised him that he could invite them over in the summer months. Furihata and Akashi told us that they'd catch up with us later, Kiyoshi nodded and picked up Koichi, holding him close as I said goodbye to the other former Rakuzan players.

"So why are you all still here?" I asked as we found everyone in our lounge.

"Kagami kicked us out." Kasamatsu replied. "Tadashi was having a tantrum."

"Nearly set Toshio off." Himuro chuckled. "But none of us wanted to leave just yet."

I nodded, Kiyoshi was already at work in the kitchen so I seized this opportunity to have a private chat with Hyuuga. Koichi was in the loving care of Takao so there was nothing stopping me dragging Hyuuga into our bedroom.

"Okay I already know--"

"What did he say to you?" I asked.

He took my hands in his, raising an eyebrow as he smiled. "He was apologising. He told me about how having Mizuki opened his eyes to how he was letting this shadow king thing get to his head, how it was ruining the few friendships he had. That's how Aomine and Sakurai knew about him and Hanamiya; he was repairing the bridges he burned and ended up getting back on good terms with them both. So over the past few months he had been trying to make himself a better person, to leave behind the character he was in high school. Obviously being with Hanamiya has an effect on that but he says he hopes that Hanamiya might follow suit." Hyuuga told me, squeezing my hands.

"Hanamiya had a point though, about a leopard not changing its spots." I replied.

"He knows that. But you have to try and look past it, he apologised to you. Sure that doesn't make what he did okay but it's time to let it go. You have a son to look after, a family to love, a life to live. I know Teppei's still not anywhere near forgiving Hanamiya but I'll work on it with him. Maybe Koichi wanting to be friends with Mizuki will force us all to get along."

"...I suppose." I mumbled, casting my gaze to the floor.

His hand on my cheek startled me slightly, he tilted my face to look at him. "We've been through a lot together Shun, we can make it through this. I'm always gonna be here for you, Teppei and Koichi." He bought my face close to his. "Just give them a chance yeah? For Koichi's sake, you saw how he was with their daughter today, he likes her."

I smiled. "Yeah, he seems smitten already."

"God that'll be weird...when he's a teenager and he's sneaking out of the apartment to--actually let's not think about that."

I giggled as Hyuuga pulled a disgusted expression at the thought of our son sneaking around our backs to have sex. I wrapped my arms around him and buried my face in his shirt. "Okay Junpei...I'll give them a chance."

He chuckled, ruffling my hair. "Speaking of which, you need to convince the rest of them to do the same."

"Eh?! Why me?"

"Because they all know you have had beef with Imayoshi so if you're the one suggesting this playdate then they'll go along with it."

I rolled my eyes. "...fine. But not now, everyone's tired and I kinda want Teppei to be okay with it first."

Hyuuga nodded. "I'll talk to him later when you're bathing Koichi."

I smiled. "I love you."

"I love you too babe."

 

\---

 

Kiyoshi wasn't one to be made a fool of twice, he made that very clear when Hyuuga tried to reason with him that night. The others had all gone home and Koichi was in bed so we had decided to head to bed and try to talk about the day's events. Kiyoshi wasn't convinced that Hanamiya had really changed, he saw a change in Imayoshi and he was accepting of that but his former team-mate still seemed the same as always.

"He admitted himself that a leopard can't--" Kiyoshi started.

"I know." I cut him off. "But maybe he just needs to be shown that we've all grown up a little bit since then."

"Guys like him don't change." He mumbled, rolling over and facing away from Hyuuga and I. My other lover exhaled as he found my hand in the darkness and squeezed it. I thought for a few moments before sitting up and leaning over Kiyoshi.

"Can you at least try?" I asked softly, running my fingers along his arm and coaxing him to roll back over. "Teppei...I know it's hard but..." I trailed off, trying to think of how Hyuuga put it to me earlier. "Like it or not we're probably going to see him again, Koichi wants to see Mizuki and you can't tell me you're going to judge her purely based on her parent's histories?"

He sighed. "...no. I wouldn't judge her based on them..."

"So you'll try?"

His hand came up and cupped my cheek. "Fine...I-I'll try. For Koichi and for you both...don't expect it to happen instantly though."

"And that's what makes you the bigger man." Hyuuga remarked. "To overlook one's past in interest of the present."

"Have you swallowed one of your history books again?" I teased. "You're speaking like some feudal lord."

He spluttered as Kiyoshi let out a hearty laugh. "He is isn't he?"

"Hyuuga's an old man."

"Oi!"

"Well, he's not wrong Junpei."

"If I could see you I'd slap you both--"

"Nah you wouldn't."

"Shut up and go to sleep!"

Kiyoshi laughed again as Hyuuga tried to steal the blankets from us. I frantically hushed them both for fear they'd wake up Koichi, all in vain as we heard him wake up with a confused sob. I figured that we were in high spirits so I quickly collected our son and bought him back to our bed, Hyuuga had turned on the small bedside lamp so the room was bathed in a slow yellow glow as I fitted back between them.

"Did we wake you up hun?" I asked a very sleepy Koichi.

He buried his face in my shirt, I stroked his head as we settled down and waited for him to fall asleep again. Kiyoshi kissed my shoulder before sticking his tongue out at Hyuuga. Hyuuga scowled at him before tugging the blankets up over Koichi and I with a mumbled goodnight. Once we were sure Koichi was asleep again, Hyuuga turned out the light.

There were a few moments of silence in the darkness.

"I'm not an old man." Hyuuga grumbled.

"You complain like one." I whispered.

"Sh-Shut up."

"You started it."

"Did not!"

Kiyoshi hummed. "I thought we were meant to be sleeping?"

"The old man keeps talking."

"Stop calling me that!"

Koichi stirred slightly in my hold, I kissed his forehead as I sighed. "It's okay Junpei, I'll still love you when you start going grey next week."

"Gee I'm so thankful babe." He sarcastically replied. "I love you too."

Kiyoshi didn't say anything, he was already half-asleep, breathing heavily on the back of my neck as Hyuuga reached out in the darkness and poked my nose. I snorted slightly as I hugged Koichi, my family surrounding me in the comfortable darkness. It had been a crazy few years, from the time of my first heat to the present, they had both stuck by me through the roller-coaster of life, the sleepless nights and hectic days. There were many more to come, equally there were many more milestones ahead; maybe we'd have another baby, maybe we'd finally be able to let go of our past, maybe Koichi would follow in our footsteps and pickup basketball as a hobby.

One thing for sure, we'd stick together and pull each other through the trials ahead with the help of our friends and family. After all, they do say sharing is caring.

 

 

> _We will reach our destination_  
>  _So just hang on for the ride_  
>  _So say a prayer and close your eyes_  
>  _Its just a little turbulence._
> 
>  

_~Fin~  
(seriously this is the end this time)_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY. First things first, the lines in italics at the beginning and end of this epilogue are lyrics from a song called "Turbulence" by a band called Bowling For Soup (that I saw live this week) and I highly recommend listening the song because I feel like it applies to the fic in a lot of ways.
> 
> Anyway. I wanna say a huge thank-you to all of you who've read this fic, whether you just dropped by occasionally or whether you checked for an update everyday.  
> I appreciate each and every one of you who've left kudos and kind words of encouragement for me during this very turbulent time of my life. It's been a tough transition from college to "the real world" and I hid myself away in this fanfic (and will continue to hide inside fanfic for another six months). 
> 
> But what gave me an excuse to get out of bed on a morning was seeing the kind words left by you guys, the little number of kudos rising slowly (or quickly depending on what time it was), and just spending nearly 7 hours a day planning and writing the next update. Basically what I'm saying is this fanfic gave me a reason to live past my 20th birthday, which is no understatement. 
> 
> I really do mean it when I say I appreciate every single one of you from the bottom of my heart. 
> 
> I'll stop babbling and go and work on my other project. I do have yet another fic in the works (very early days) for knb but then I'm probably going to start writing for the Haikyuu!! fandom. (I haven't forgotten the few requests I have pending, I'm just a perfectionist and I need to be happy with what I write before I publish it.) 
> 
> So yeah! Thank-you once again, I hope that you enjoyed this fic~
> 
> \- Bryn


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